ISLAMABAD, July 15: Pakistan will take over next month the command of a multinational naval coalition patrolling waters around the Arabian Peninsula to stop terrorism and piracy and search vessels suspected of smuggling arms or material used for making nuclear weapons, an official source told Dawn.

This would be for the second time that Pakistan would get the command of Combined Task Force 150 (CTF-150) of the Coalition Maritime Campaign Plan on Aug 1 for four months.

The CTF-150 is one of the several naval units operating under the US-led maritime coalition that was formed as part of the Operation Enduring Freedom.

The United States, Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Pakistan all contribute to the maritime component of Operation Enduring Freedom.

The mission oversees the Straits of Hormuz through which almost a quarter of the world’s oil is transported from the Gulf.

While two other units handle the Gulf, CTF-150’s 15 vessels also patrol an area that includes the Gulf of Oman, the Arabian Sea, the Red Sea and parts of the Indian Ocean.