Irish navy detains French ship off Mizen Head

The Naval Vessel L.É. William Butler Yeats detained the boat this morning. File Picture: David Creedon / Anzenberger

The Irish Naval Service has detained a French-registered fishing vessel for alleged breaches of fishing regulations.

Early this morning, the LÉ William Butler Yeats (P63) offshore patrol vessel, detained the boat approximately 110 nautical miles south of Mizen Head, Ireland's most south-westerly point.

An Irish Naval spokesperson said the detention was ordered in relation to alleged breaches of fishing regulations.

"The vessel will be escorted to port, where on arrival it will be handed over to An Garda Síochána," the spokesperson said.

The French-registered vessel is the sixth ship detained by the Irish Navy so far this year.

In June, A Spanish ship was detained for illegal fishing in Irish waters.

The trawler had allegedly been operating close to Bantry Bay - within Ireland’s 12-nautical mile fishing limit.

In 2020, the Irish Naval Service conducted more than 300 operations boarding fishing vessels, resulting in 16 detentions.