![]() Árni Finnsson, the chair of the Iceland Nature Conservation Association, said: “This killing is inhumane it has to stop. One whale with a harpoon in its back was chased for five hours without success. It showed, of the 36 whales shot more than once, five whales were shot three times and four whales were shot four times. The hunting of 58 whales was filmed and analysed by experts on behalf of the food and veterinary authority. In Iceland, 148 whales were killed in 2022. It has to end immediately – no one in Iceland is dependent on this meat.” This new evidence underscores how outdated this practice is. “There is no humane way to kill a whale at sea. Whales are sentient, intelligent and complex creatures that suffer both physically and psychologically during this traumatic massacre.” No animal – however it is killed – should suffer for such a long time. Patrick Ramage, senior director at the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), said: “Whatever their views on whaling, both Icelanders and the international community will be horrified by these findings. Last August, the ministry issued a regulation requiring the food and veterinary authority (MAST) to carry out regular inspections of whaling hunts, in order to promote animal welfare. ![]() However, Svavarsdóttir said last year that the country planned to end whaling from 2024 as demand dwindled. Iceland is one of the few countries that hunts whales commercially, along with Norway and Japan, despite a ban on commercial whaling that has been in place since 1986 under the international whaling commission. This report, along with the expert council on animal welfare’s findings, will serve as essential background material for making decisions about the future of whaling post 2023.” I believe that industries incapable of guaranteeing animal welfare should be considered part of our past rather than our future. Svandís Svavarsdóttir, Iceland’s minister of food, agriculture and fisheries, said: “This alarming report underscores the need for a discussion in Iceland about the values we want to be known for. But it questioned whether hunting large whales could meet animal welfare objectives and referred its finding to an expert animal welfare council to decide.Īnimal welfare campaigners described the findings as intolerable and unacceptable and called on the Icelandic government to halt all whale hunts. The provisions of the animal welfare act on hunting had not been violated, it found, due to the “best known” methods used by the hunt. ![]() The report, described as alarming by Iceland’s minister of food agriculture and fisheries, found the killing of some whales had taken too long. ![]()
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