Pakistan Navy seizes over 2,000kg of ice worth nearly $130m in Arabian Sea drug bust
The Pakistan Navy (PN) seized over 2,000 kilogrammes of methamphetamine, commonly known as ice, in a drug bust worth $130 million in the Arabian Sea, according to a statement issued on Wednesday.
The statement from the navy’s Directorate-General Public Relations (DG PR) said the PN Tabuk was conducting a regional maritime security patrol in support of the Saudi-led Combined Task Force 150 under the Combined Maritime Force (CMF), a naval partnership that includes the United States, when it intercepted a “suspicious dhow” operating in the Arabian Sea.
“Subsequently, the ship successfully conducted a major counter-narcotics operation onboard stateless dhow, resulting in the seizure of over 2000kg of ice,” the statement said, adding that the capture was the third consecutive successful interdiction conducted in the last two months by PN ships.
The navy said these successful operations demonstrated its “enduring resolve and unwavering commitment” against illicit trafficking at sea.
“The scale of the operation, coupled with its flawless execution, underscores not only PN’s professionalism but also the effectiveness of multinational coordination under CMF.”
“PN remains steadfast in its resolve to safeguard national maritime interests and uphold principles of the United Nations Convention on the Law of Sea while contributing to the global commons through maritime security efforts,” the statement concluded.
Last month, PN Yarmook seized narcotics worth more than $972m from sailboats in the Arabian Sea.
In August, the navy and the Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) had seized about 1,250kg of illicit drugs worth $38m from smugglers near Balochistan’s Pasni coast.
