KARACHI: Pakistan has stepped up naval and aerial surveillance of the Arabian Sea in a bid to protect traffic in international shipping lanes, the navy said on Sunday.

Pakistan Navy said it had deployed its ships in wake of the recent maritime security incidents in the Arabian Sea.

The development comes days after an Indian Navy warship intercepted a Bahrain-bound bulk carrier following reports that the vessel had been hijac­ked off the coast of Somalia.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Pakistan Navy said it is “ensuring [a] permanent presence in the Arabian Sea to keep our and international sea lines of communications under intense surveillance”.

Navy says aerial monitoring increased, ships patrolling global shipping lanes

“Two to three ships are always patrolling the areas [where] Pakistan-bound and international merchant ships are plying. In addition, extensive air surveillance is also being undertaken to ensure the safety of international sea lines of communications passing through our maritime area.

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Earlier, Reuters repor­ted that the hijacking and attempted hijacking of commercial ships in the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea resumed in December after a six-year lull.

Experts attributed this rise to the fact that pirates had been encouraged by US-led anti-piracy naval forces diverting their attention to the neighbouring Red Sea to thwart attacks there by Houthi forces from Yemen.

Maritime traffic has been disrupted over the past several weeks after the Houthis began carrying out attacks on vessels in the Gulf region to show their support for the people of Gaza.

Major shippers such as Maersk have paused or diverted their vessels away from the Red Sea — the shortest route from Asia to Europe via the Suez Canal — after a number of craft came under attack from Houthi drones and gunboats.

Even though India is not part of the US-led Red Sea task force, it had deployed ships in the region.

Following last week’s hijacking attempt, New Delhi had announced it was providing protective escorts to Indian container ships in the high seas around the Red Sea as the security situation there continues to simmer.

Earlier, the Indian navy had said that task groups of frigates and destroyers had been deployed in the central and northern Arabian Sea to assist merchant vessels passing through the region.

“Aerial surveillance by long-range maritime pat­rol aircraft and RPAs (Remotely Piloted Air­craft) has been enhanced to have a complete maritime domain awareness,” Reuters quoted a statement as saying.

Published in Dawn, January 8th, 2024