MANAMA, Bahrain — Zeroing in on a small fishing dhow loaded with heroin in 2 million square miles of ocean is like trying to find a needle in a haystack, but a crew of mostly Canadian troops has helped find six in the past two months, hauling in nearly 16 tons of illicit drugs.

The number of uniformed troops wearing maple leaf flags who are taking part in the 33-nation naval partnership here is small, but their area of responsibility is enormous, spanning the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Indian Ocean and Gulf of Oman, including some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes.

Just before Christmas, they helped lead the British destroyer HMS Dragon to a pair of dhows carrying nearly 11 tons of illegal drugs, about $6.5 million worth — the most in any bust since the Combined Maritime Force here transitioned from a U.S. force to a multinational counterterrorism and maritime security coalition after 9/11.

In all, their efforts have yielded six drug busts totaling 31,585 pounds since they took over the reins for Combined Task Force 150 from the Saudi navy in December on a four-month rotation.

The task force focuses on disrupting terrorist activities in the region by preventing them from transiting the region’s waterways, which includes the narrow choke points at the Strait of Hormuz, Bab el Mandeb and the Suez Canal.

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https://www.stripes.com/news/canadian-troops-in-bahrain-bust-drug-runners-on-the-hash-highway

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