December 21, 2003	Sunday	Shawwal 26, 1424

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KARACHI, Dec 20: Pakistani maritime authorities arrested 39 Indian fishermen in six boats Saturday for encroaching into Pakistani territorial waters in the Arabian Sea, police said.

The Maritime Security Agency (MSA) of Pakistan arrested the fishermen early on Saturday and handed them over to the police, officer Maqsood Ahmed told AFP.

This was the second batch of Indian fishermen arrested in a month. The MSA arrested 13 Indian fishermen in November.

The coast guards of both countries routinely detain each other’s fishermen for straying across de facto maritime borders.

In November, Pakistan and Indian maritime authorities exchanged fishermen, who had been held for the same reason, as a confidence-building measure between the two countries.

Pakistan handed over 74 Indian fishermen and India handed over 93 Pakistanis.