French frigate seizes drug-laden vessel in Arabian Sea

A French Navy vessel operating under Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150) seized a huge amount of hashish from a small dhow in the Arabian Sea late last month.

The Floréal-class light surveillance frigate FS Nivôse had tracked the suspect vessel after it was detected on radar. The dhow did not respond to Nivôse‘s requests for identification, prompting the frigate’s crew to send two rigid inflatable boat (RIB) teams to board and search the other vessel.

The French Navy sailors discovered over 2.5 tonnes of hashish on board the dhow. The confiscated narcotics were subsequently destroyed.