Photos by: Sea Shepherd
Animal activists from around the world are mourning the death of hundreds of whales and dolphins after the Faroe Islands’ horrific whale hunting “tradition” continued last month.
Many had hoped for this year’s whaling season to be cancelled due to the pandemic, but sadly, it was given the go ahead by fishing ministry Jacob Vestergaard on July 7th.
Fishermen used vessels to herd the whales and dolphins into the bay off Hvalba, a village on the island of Suduroy, where 252 long-finned pilot whales and 35 Atlantic White-sided dolphins were brutally killed with spears.
Sea Shepherd has long condemned this “barbarous practice,” while demanding an end to the Faroe Islands’ outdated whale hunting season.
Every year, up to 1,000 migrating pilot whales and other dolphins are hunted and brutally killed in the Danish protectorate of the Faroe Islands. Sea Shepherd has led opposition to the grindadráp since the 1980s, saving the lives of hundreds of pilot whales and bringing global attention to the ongoing slaughters.
A total of 28 Sea Shepherd volunteers have been arrested for interfering against the grindadráp, many of whom were subsequently deported for the “crime” of defending pilot whales.
Although Sea Shepherd was able to successfully disrupt the whale hunting season in 2014, the organization was hit with legislation that allowed Danish military to keep the NGO outside Faroese waters.
