China's self-imposed fishing ban yields positive fruits

China's self-imposed annual summer fishing ban in its major seas this year, which took place from May to September, has achieved its expected goals, officials announced at a press conference held in Beijing on Monday.

The ban, enforced by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security, and the China Coast Guard, has been effective in curbing illegal fishing activities and allowing marine resources to recover.

The three departments deployed 696,000 law enforcement personnel and 62,000 vessels to supervise the ban, said Liu Xinzhong, director of the fisheries administration of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

"The law enforcement activities banned 7,298 illegal vessels without a name, registration or valid certificates, removed 111,000 nets with extremely small mesh sizes, and dismantled 886,000 meters of fishing nets at sea. A total of 529 events were held to collectively dismantle and eliminate law-offending tools. And a total of 9,770 cases of law violations were investigated, remarkably bringing down law-offenses that disrupt the order of the summer fishing ban at sea," Liu said.

After four months of rest and releases of fish stocks, there has been a noticeable recovery in fishery resources.

Data collected by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs indicate that since the lifting of the ban in September, the catch of main economic species such as hairtail and mackerel has increased. In the South China Sea, the average daily catch of single-trawl fishing boats has apparently grown, with the yield of shellfish increasing by 9.4 times, crabs by 3.7 times, and that of golden threadfin bream and other fish also expanded remarkably.

"Moving forward, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the Ministry of Public Security and the China Coast Guard will strengthen law enforcement and supervision on aquaculture. Efforts will be made to further standardize aquaculture production and multiple measured will be taken simultaneously to ensure the quality and safety of aquatic products, so that people will rest assured to consume seafood," said Liu.

China's self-imposed fishing ban yields positive fruits

Iranian Army Ground Force Commander Brigadier General Ali Jahanshahi on Thursday warned that the enemy must understand that a ground war will be "more dangerous and costly" for them, as the U.S. administration under President Donald Trump weighs a ground attack on the country.

During his inspection tour of the country's borders, Jahanshahi emphasized that every inch of Iran's territory is protected by vigilant Iranian troops, who are monitoring all enemy movements while standing ready for any scenario.

The Iranian army forces are standing firm and steadfast on the frontlines of defense and they will incapacitate the enemy, he said.

Also on Thursday, an Iranian military source said that Iran has mobilized more than one million troops in preparation for a potential U.S. ground invasion.

In recent days there has been a massive influx of applications from Iranian youth directed into the centers of Basij, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC), and the Artesh (Iran's regular army) for participation in possible ground battles.

Trump is reportedly considering the deployment of 10,000 additional ground troops to the Middle East to give Washington more military options amid negotiations with Iran.

The president on Thursday put on pause his threat to bomb Iran's energy plants for 10 days unless Tehran reopens the Strait of Hormuz.

Iranian army commander warns U.S. ground warfare 'dangerous, costly'