Pakistan installs fishing nets at security outposts to block drone attacks

What the report says

Police in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province are using fishing nets as a low-cost shield against drone attacks at vulnerable security outposts, according to Al Jazeera. The measure has been rolled out in Hangu district, near the Afghan border, after a series of assaults in the area involving armed groups, including attacks claimed by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The nets are strung above rooftops and perimeter walls to create an overhead barrier meant to snag drones or lessen the impact of any blast.

Local police told Al Jazeera the system was first installed about two months ago at the Sarki Piyala checkpost, where officers said no drone attack has occurred since. District police officials said covering a standard post can cost about 400,000 Pakistani rupees, and that more nets are being added in Hangu and in other vulnerable districts, including Kohat, Karak, Bannu, Lakki Marwat and Dera Ismail Khan. In some places, military outposts have also adopted the approach.

The move comes amid a broader rise in militant violence in the province, where armed groups have increasingly paired gunfire and mortars with drones and quadcopters. Al Jazeera reported that police and security officials view the nets as an additional layer of protection, though some security analysts questioned whether the tactic can meaningfully stop drone threats beyond specific sites. The article notes that the idea echoes camouflage netting used elsewhere, and that police say they tested the system in Kohat before wider use.