Australian navy drug bust worth more than $208m

The Royal Australian Navy has seized more than 2.1 tonnes of hashish and 345 kilograms of heroin during two operations in the Arabian Sea.

Royal Australian Navy frigate HMAS Ballarat has seized more than 2.1 tonnes of hashish and 345 kilograms of heroin. Source: Royal Australian Navy

The Australian navy has seized more than $208 million worth of hashish and heroin from fishing vessels in the Arabian Sea.

During the course of two operations, on Monday and Tuesday, the Royal Australian Navy's HMAS Ballarat seized the narcotics - more than 2.1 tonnes of hashish and 345 kilograms of heroin - as part of Operation Manitou.

"The boardings were conducted under the direction of the Combined Maritime Forces in international waters," Commanding Officer Paul Johnson said in a statement on Saturday.

Leading seaman maritime logistics personnel Aaron Wheeler pulls out a sack containing suspected illegal narcotics from the hold in a suspicious dhow. Source: Royal Australian Navy

The drug bust follows previous seizures of 931 kilograms of heroin in December and 3.1 tonnes of hashish in early January.

"Ballarat's success so far has been the result of a complex operation using sophisticated technology, information networks and careful surveillance to detect vessels suspected of narcotics trafficking," Commander Johnson said.

HMAS Ballarat has been deployed to the Middle East for nine months in a bid to counter terrorism and piracy operations in the North Indian Ocean, the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden.