Iceland Orders Deportation of Anti-Whaling Vessel’s Crew
Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, X/ @WashTimesLocal.
August 6, 2026 Hour: 9:18 am
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On July 30, the Bandero approached the whaling vessel Hvalur 9 in an attempt to disrupt its voyage.
On Wednesday, Iceland’s national public-service RUV reported that Icelandic authorities have ordered the deportation of all 21 crew members of an anti-whaling vessel and the crew members are also subject to re-entry bans.
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The activists have been allowed to leave the vessel but must report regularly to police pending enforcement of the deportation orders. Police have accused them of suspected violations of international maritime law and endangering maritime safety.
On July 30, the Bandero, operated by the marine conservation group Captain Paul Watson Foundation, approached the Icelandic whaling vessel Hvalur 9 in an attempt to disrupt its voyage. The Hvalur 9 crew requested assistance after reporting that they believed their safety was under threat.
The Icelandic Coast Guard said the Bandero had failed to comply with orders to leave Icelandic waters. Coast Guard personnel and a police special forces unit subsequently boarded the vessel and took control of it. The Bandero was brought into Reykjavik harbor last Friday.
The Bandero had spent several weeks monitoring Hvalur 9 as part of “Operation 86,” its campaign against Iceland’s commercial fin whale hunt.
The Captain Paul Watson Foundation disputed the authorities’ handling of the case, alleging that crew members were initially denied access to lawyers of their choice and prevented from contacting their families.
Iceland resumed commercial whaling in June after a two-year pause. It is one of three countries, alongside Norway and Japan, that permit commercial whaling. Most of Icelandic whale meat is exported to Japan.
teleSUR/ JF
Source: Xinhua
