Iceland seizes Paul Watson Foundation’s anti-whaling ship and detains its crew
Summary
Iceland's coast guard and special forces seized an anti-whaling ship called Bandero, operated by Paul Watson’s foundation, and detained its crew after the ship did not leave Icelandic waters and ignored orders. The ship was taken to Reykjavik, and Icelandic police are investigating and plan to deport the crew.Key Facts
- Iceland’s coast guard and police special forces took control of the Bandero ship on Thursday night.
- The crew of a whaling ship called Hvalur 9 asked for help, saying the protest ship Bandero threatened their safety.
- Bandero did not follow orders to leave Iceland’s waters or to stop its engines.
- Paul Watson, the anti-whaling activist who founded the group operating Bandero, was not on the ship.
- The 21 crew members are detained on the ship without access to their phones.
- Iceland, along with Norway and Japan, still allows commercial whaling under set quotas.
- Whale meat demand in Iceland is low, and most exports go to Japan.
- Paul Watson has a history of using aggressive tactics against whalers and was removed from Interpol’s most-wanted list in 2025 after being on it since 2012.
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