Pakistan navy seizes drugs worth $972 million in Arabian Sea

Pakistan’s naval ship Yarmook has seized drugs worth more than $972 million in the Arabian Sea, the Combined Maritime Forces reported on Tuesday.

The seizure was supported by the Saudi-led Combined Task Force (CTF) 150 of the CMF under CTF 150’s focused operation AL MASMAK.

The Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) is a 47-nation naval partnership that promotes security and stability across 3.2 million square kilometers of water that includes the world’s important shipping lanes.

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“The success of this focused operation highlights the importance of multinational cooperation,” said Royal Saudi Naval Forces Commodore Fahad Aljoiad, commander of CTF 150. “Pakistan Navy Ship (PNS) Yarmook has had one of the most successful drug seizures for the CMF, which is directly attributable to the expertise and cooperation of our organization,” he added.

PNS Yarmook intercepted two dhows not transmitting on the Automatic Identification System (AIS), which were subsequently identified as having no nationality. On October 18, two tons of crystal methamphetamine (ICE) worth over $822 million were seized from the first dhow.

Subsequently, 350 kg of ICE valued at $140 million and 50 kg of cocaine valued at $10 million were seized from the second dhow within 48 hours of the first incident.

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Operation AL MASMAK began on October 16 to disrupt the ability of non-state actors to move drugs and other illicit substances in the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman. The operation comes in coordination between Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, France, Spain and US naval assets.