LONDON (AP) — Icelandic coast guards and special forces have successfully seized the whaling ship Hvalur 9, affiliated with a group founded by the renowned anti-whaling activist Paul Watson. The operation took place on Saturday, as officials from the Arctic island nation reported the detention of the crew aboard the vessel.
According to the Icelandic Coast Guard, the Hvalur 9 crew had requested assistance on Thursday evening, citing concerns for their safety due to the protest vessel Bandero, which allegedly ignored instructions to vacate Icelandic waters. Furthermore, the Bandero reportedly disobeyed an order to cease its operations, prompting the coast guards to take action.
In a coordinated effort, coast guards alongside the police special forces Viking Squad boarded the Bandero just after midnight on Thursday and apprehended its crew members. Notably, Paul Watson was not present aboard the vessel during the incident. The Captain Paul Watson Foundation confirmed the seizure and noted that the 21 crew members were being held on the ship without access to their phones.
By Friday, the Hvalur 9 had arrived in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland, where local police took over the investigation. Reports from Icelandic national broadcaster RUV indicated that police aimed to deport the crew of the Bandero and prohibit them from returning to Iceland in the future.
Iceland, along with Norway and Japan, remains one of the few countries that still practice commercial whaling. The nation establishes annual quotas for hunting fin whales and minke whales within its waters, with most of the whale meat being exported to Japan. However, demand for whale meat has decreased since Japan resumed commercial whaling in 2019 after exiting the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
The whaling practice has become increasingly controversial in Iceland, where whale meat is not commonly consumed. Paul Watson, a Canadian-born activist aged 75, previously led the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, engaging in various confrontational tactics against whaling vessels. Watson’s efforts have drawn considerable support from celebrities and were chronicled in the reality TV series “Whale Wars.” He left Sea Shepherd in 2022 to establish his own foundation.
Watson faced significant legal challenges, including imprisonment in Greenland for five months in 2024 after being arrested on a Japanese warrant related to obstructing a whaling ship in 2010. Upon his release in December 2024, Watson expressed his intention to avoid countries that might attempt to arrest him again, citing the need for caution in his activism.
In 2012, he was subject to a “red notice” from Interpol, although he was subsequently removed from the most-wanted list in 2025. His aggressive methods have polarized the anti-whaling movement he initiated, with critics in the marine industry accusing activist groups of jeopardizing the safety of vessels and individuals.
Earlier in 2024, the Bandero was involved in a collision with an industrial krill trawler in Antarctica. The Norwegian owner of the trawler labeled the incident as a deliberate attack that not only endangered the crew's safety but also posed a significant risk of an environmental disaster.
