One of Iceland’s two remaining whaling vessels departed for hunting grounds this week, ending a two-year suspension of the controversial practice, according to local media and advocacy groups reporting on Saturday.
Iceland remains one of only three nations—alongside Norway and Japan—that continue to authorize commercial whaling, defying widespread international criticism from the public and animal welfare organizations.
Before the vessel left Reykjavik harbor on Friday, a demonstrator chained himself to the ship’s mast in protest. He descended voluntarily later that evening and was escorted away by police, Icelandic broadcaster RÚV reported.
“It is deeply disheartening to witness Iceland’s whaling fleet depart for another season of slaughter, despite overwhelming evidence that there is no humane method to kill a whale at sea,” said Joanna Swabe of Humane World for Animals, following the departure of the second vessel.
“These ocean giants are likely to endure prolonged, agonizing deaths for meat that virtually no one in Iceland consumes,” she added.
The hunt was halted in 2024 and 2025, largely because economic downturns had eroded demand and rendered the industry insufficiently profitable.