Operation Icefish, Sea Shepherd's first campaign to target Illegal, Unregulated, Unreported (IUU) fishing of toothfish in the waters of Antarctica, and the organization's longest, continuous at-sea campaign to date has concluded with unexpected success.
The crew of the Sea Shepherd ship, Bob Barker, has confirmed that a set of buoys, attached to a beacon, were set out by the crew of the Thunder under the cover of night, indicating that the vessel is resuming illegal fishing activity.
Japan's fisheries minister said Tuesday his country will never stop hunting whales, despite fierce criticism from other nations and violent clashes at sea with militant conservationists.
New Zealand joined Australia in criticizing Japan’s decision to resume whaling in Antarctic waters later this year and Tokyo's announcement that it will increase security for its whaling fleet.
The Japanese whaling fleet has called an early end to its whaling season in Antarctica a move which conservationists tentatively say could spell an end to whaling in the Southern Ocean. But Greenpeace Japan said there were other reasons to halt “scientific whaling”.
Recent Wikileaks cables have exposed classified material sent by the United States embassy in Tokyo to the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
Japan’s Coast Guard has obtained an arrest warrant for the head of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, accusing him of ordering members of the protest group to obstruct the Japanese whaling fleet, investigative sources said Friday.