Tunisian customs inspectors have thwarted an attempt to smuggle 315kg of raw coral worth €600,000 to Malta on board a yacht, TAP news agency has reported.

The inspectors raided a yacht at Monastir on Tuesday night, the head of the border customs office, Habib Bourguiba said.

The owners of the yacht, a Tunisian expatriate, and a Dutch national, were arrested. The yacht and the coral were seized.

Prof Alan Deidun, writing on his Facebook page, explained that precious red coral, an endemic Mediterranean species, has been fished in this part of the world since antiquity, since man has always attributed healing powers to this species, which is found at depths ranging between 5m and well in excess of 1000m!

The species is still actively sought and exploited in view of its high commercial value in the jewellery industry.
 
In the mid-1980s, Prime Minister Mintoff even set a company called Mediterranean Coral Fishing Company to promote its commercial exploitation from Maltese waters. The company folded up after only three  years since red coral quantities fished from local waters were small.