Sunken Whaler Was a Cruel Killer

It is not a surprise that an unknown person (or persons) targeted the Willassen Senior - the outlaw Norwegian whaling vessel that was scuttled on the evening of August 30, 2007.

Undercover video of a Norwegian whale hunt, taken in May 2005, was released today by the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA). This footage is believed to be the first of its kind captured by a non-governmental organization (NGO) in over a decade. Though Norway claims to be the best in the business when it comes to accuracy and relative humaneness of commercial whale kills, the footage tells a different story.

In this video, the Willassen Senior was documented pursuing a Piked (minke) whale in choppy conditions. The whale was harpooned and subsequently riddled with bullets from a high-powered rifle. It spent 15 minutes diving, resurfacing, and rolling about on the surface in extreme agony before it finally succumbed to the attack and died.

Click here to view the footage taken by WSPA and EIA in May 2005.

The Willassen Senior is the fifth Norwegian whaling vessel to come under attack for illegal whaling activities since 1992. The complete list to date includes:

The Nybraena - scuttled dockside in December 1992 (Reine, Lofoten Islands).
The Senet - Scuttled dockside in January 1994 (Fredricksberg, Norway).
The Elin-Toril - Severely damaged in 1997.
The Morild - Sunk in 1998.
The Williassen Senior - Sunk in August 2007 (Svolvaer, Lofoten Islands).

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