Activists Thwart Japanese Whale Hunt

"Japan's annual Antarctic whale-hunting season has fallen short of its target catch because of disruptions by anti-whaling activists, officials say.

Japan's Fisheries Agency said its fleet had killed 679 Minke whales out of a planned 935, and just one Fin whale, despite a target of 50.

It partly blamed the disruptions on the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a US-based environmental group.

Protesters had escalated their attacks on Japanese ships, the agency said.

The Fisheries Agency said 16 days of hunting were lost due to bad weather and confrontations at sea between activists and the six-ship whaling fleet.

It added that several hunting ships were damaged in collisions or by chemicals thrown by the protesters."

ORIGINAL SOURCE: BBC NEWS