Icelandic authorities have seized a vessel operated by a group founded by anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, detaining all 21 crew members on board. The operation involved the Icelandic Coast Guard and the nation's police special forces, known as the Viking Squad, who boarded the protest vessel Bandero around midnight on Thursday.
The incident began when the crew of the whaling ship Hvalur 9 reported feeling threatened by the presence of the Bandero on Thursday evening. According to the Icelandic Coast Guard, the protest vessel failed to comply with multiple instructions to exit Icelandic waters and subsequently ignored an order to stop its engines. Following the boarding, the ship was taken to Reykjavik on Friday, where police have assumed control of the investigation. Reports from the Icelandic national broadcaster RUV indicate that authorities intend to pursue deportation and travel bans for the detained crew members. Paul Watson himself was not present on the vessel during the seizure.
The Captain Paul Watson Foundation confirmed the ship's seizure, stating that the crew members are being held aboard the vessel and have been deprived of their mobile phones. Watson, a 75-year-old Canada-born activist, formerly led the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society before founding his own organization in 2022. His career has been marked by high-profile confrontations with whaling fleets, resulting in numerous arrests and international attention, including his involvement in the reality series "Whale Wars."
In 2024, Watson spent five months imprisoned in Greenland following his arrest on a Japanese warrant related to a 2010 incident involving the obstruction of a whaling ship. Upon his release in December 2024, he expressed caution regarding his future travel, noting his need to avoid countries where he might be detained due to previous Interpol involvement. Watson was previously the subject of an Interpol "red notice" in 2012, though he was removed from the most-wanted list in 2025.
The practice of commercial whaling remains a contentious issue in Iceland, which, alongside Norway and Japan, continues the hunt for fin and minke whales. While the nation sets annual quotas, the domestic demand for whale meat has significantly declined. Most of the catch is exported to Japan, though that market has also seen decreased interest since Japan resumed commercial whaling in 2019. The activities of the Captain Paul Watson Foundation have faced criticism from marine firms, who argue that the group's tactics endanger lives and vessels. Earlier this year, the Bandero was involved in a collision with an industrial krill trawler in Antarctica, an event the vessel's Norwegian owner described as a deliberate attack that posed a severe environmental risk.
