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| ©2005 HSI/WDCS |
According to a April 15, 2007 Reuters' article, Iceland may not be committed to whaling.
Iceland's prime minister said that his government has not decided if it will let the commercial hunts continue, and called current whaling an "experiment." He reported that they are waiting to see if the whalemeat can be sold and must consider global opposition.
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After a hiatus starting in August 2007, in May 2008 Iceland resumed its commercial whale hunt once again. |
The Icelandic Fisheries Ministry announced on Oct. 17, 2006, that it would resume commercial whale hunts. By Nov. 2, Iceland had killed seven endangered fin whales.
Iceland had planned to kill 30 minke and nine fin whales by September 2007, while continuing to hunt whales through its "scientific" research program.
Iceland's return to commercial whaling has drawn worldwide criticism, as well as public opposition from Icelandic tourism companies, which fear a negative impact on Iceland's robust whale-watching industry.
Iceland has consistently rejected international efforts to conserve whales, and its "scientific" whaling was widely criticized as commercial whaling in disguise.
