French ship Provence seizes weapons cache from dhow

Manama: The French FREMM destroyer FS Provence found and seized a large weapons cache after boarding a dhow in the Northern Indian Ocean.

The incident took place when FS Provence was operating as part of the Combined Maritime Forces Combined Task Force 150 (CTF 150), which conducts maritime security and counter-terrorism operations.

The dhow was spotted heading towards Somalia by Provence’s Caïman helicopter while it was undertaking routine surveillance in the Northern Indian Ocean. Subsequently, Provence boarded the dhow and ascertained that it was without nationality.

Provence then undertook a search for the vessel, during which the weapons were found. The haul included several hundred AK47 assault rifles, machine guns and anti-tank weapons.

As the illicit weapons were deemed to be destined for Somalia, they were seized under the United Nations Security Council mandated arms embargo in accordance with UNSCR 2244 (2015).

“This success remains a collective one, showing the value of like-minded nations committing ships and aircraft for the common good,” said the Commanding Officer of Provence.

“France has been supporting Combined Maritime Forces operations since their inception. This seizure is another French contribution to the stabilisation of the region,” said a CMF spokesperson.

Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) is a multi-national naval partnership, which exists to promote security, stability and prosperity across approximately 3.2 million square miles of international waters, which encompass some of the world’s most important shipping lanes.

CMF’s main focus areas are defeating terrorism, preventing piracy, encouraging regional cooperation and promoting a safe maritime environment.

CMF counters violent extremism and terrorist networks in maritime areas of responsibility; works with regional and other partners to improve overall security and stability; helps strengthen regional nations’ maritime capabilities and, when requested, responds to environmental and humanitarian crises.

It is comprised of three task forces: CTF 150 (maritime security and counter-terrorism), CTF 151 (counter piracy) and CTF 152 (Arabian Gulf security and cooperation).

The 31 member nations include Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Malaysia, the Netherlands,  New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, The Philippines, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, Seychelles, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, the UAE, the UK, the USA and Yemen.