Aden (South24) 

The US Navy announced that it had intercepted on January 30 a fishing vessel loaded with drugs worth $33 million in the Gulf of Oman.

The Central Command said that a naval patrol seized about 4 tons of hashish and half a ton of methamphetamine, which was on board the ship.

The statement did not indicate the ship's destination or the nationalities of its crew. This is the first operation to seize a drug shipment in the Gulf of Oman during 2023.

In a related context, the Wall Street Journal said on Wednesday that the French navy seized a ship loaded with weapons and ammunition in the Gulf of Oman.

The newspaper quoted officials as saying that the French special forces intercepted on January 15 a ship loaded with weapons that was on its way to Yemen's Houthis.

The shipment included 3,000 assault rifles, half a million of ammunition rounds and 20 anti-tank guided missiles. The operation was carried out in coordination with the US Navy.

Related: US Navy Seized an Iranian Weapons Ship Heading to Yemen

In recent months, the pursuit and seizure of Iranian ships and boats loaded with weapons and drugs on their way to Yemen has intensified.

Late last year, the US Navy announced the seizure of 3 ships carrying tens of tons of weapons, ammunition and missile fuel on their way to the Houthis.

Related: US Navy Seizes a Weapons Shipment in the Arabian Sea

Simultaneously, government authorities in the governorates of Al-Mahra and Hadramout thwarted land shipments of weapons that crossed the Shahn land border crossing with the Sultanate of Oman.

On January 22, local sources revealed to "South24 Center" that 100 drone engines and communication devices were seized on board a commercial truck in Al-Mahra governorate.

The sources suggested that the shipment, which was seized last December, was on its way to the Houthis, weeks after two weapons trucks were seized in Shibam district of Wadi Hadramout.