PMSA arrests 28 Indian fishermen for illegal fishing

KARACHI: The Pakistan Maritime Security Agency (PMSA) on Friday arrested 28 Indian fishermen for fishing illegally in Pakistani waters, a spokesperson from the agency said.

According to the spokesperson, the PMSA carried out an operation in the open sea during which the agency arrested 28 Indian fishermen and seized five of their vessels for illegal fishing.

The arrested fishermen were handed over to the Docks police for further legal action, the spokesperson added.

Earlier this month, 43 Indian fishermen were arrested and their fishing vessels seized for entering Pakistan’s territorial waters. Aircrafts and speedboats were used in the operation, which was conducted near Pakistan’s maritime border in the Arabian Sea.

Indian and Pakistani forces regularly detain each other’s fishing vessels and crews for alleged illegal fishing within the other side’s territorial waters. However, there has been a sharp increase in the number of operations and, consequently, arrests and vessel seizures with the start of the fishing season this year.