The Icelandic Coast Guard and local police have seized a vessel being operated by an environmental activist group that was attempting to disrupt whaling activities in Iceland's exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
The interception took place on Friday, July 31, when personnel from the coast guard and local police boarded Bandero, a 65-metre motor yacht operated by the Paul Watson Foundation, while it was pursuing the whaling ship Hvalur 9 within the EEZ.
The crew of Hvalur 9 sought assistance from the coast guard, claiming that they were being threatened by the activists' vessel.
The coast guard then deployed a helicopter to the area. The helicopter crew then issued radio calls requesting Bandero to leave, but the yacht sent no response.
A coast guard vessel arrived in the area later in the day on Friday. The coast guard crew then ordered the yacht's crew to stop its engines, but the activists again sent no response.
The coast guard and police boarding team seized the yacht later that evening (local time) and placed the captain under arrest. The yacht was then directed to sail for Reykjavik, where it has since remained under detention.
Local media said that prosecutors will conduct an investigation into the yacht's activities since it entered Iceland's EEZ waters two weeks prior.
The Paul Watson Foundation has since issued a statement claiming that Bandero is a "conservation vessel" and is "being held captive."
The foundation said that it has been monitoring Hvalur 9's activities, adding that the vessel had been harpooning whales outside legally permitted areas.
