The annual whale hunt is a bloody and graphic scene. Picture: Alastair Ward/Triangle NewsWarning: Graphic content
A Cambridge University student has photographed a graphic scene in the Faroe Islands.
The image, which has been condemned, shows the traditional ''whale driving,'' an event that occurs regularly on the self-governing territory of Denmark located between the UK and Iceland.
Every year, often in August, about 800 pilot whales are slaughtered in the bay in the village of Sandavágu, a practice that goes back centuries.
Animal rights activists have long criticised the practice but the Faroese Government has said the primary reason for the cull is food and regulations has been significantly improved.
Even children take part in the event. Picture: Alastair Ward/Triangle NewsMr Ward described the disturbing scene he witnessed.
“They were driving them into the bay, prodding them with their oars.
“Once they got close enough, the whole town sprinted in and started hacking at them,” he told the Triangle News agency.
“Even the children were getting involved, pulling on the ropes and jumping on the carcasses.
“We were just sat there speechless and a bit upset but you couldn’t really pull yourself away.”
The sea is turned red by the event. Picture: Alastair Ward/Triangle NewsThe cull, which goes back to at least the 13th century and it's government has repeatedly defended the practice. In 2015, it was forced to deny claims the whales were “hacked to death,” a term that had been used in a number of reports, and insisted the death of the whales was almost instant.
And they have again insisted the hunt won't be ending, “It is the right of the Faeroese people to use its natural resources. The pilot whale hunt is regulated and sustainable, and a natural part of Faroe Island life,” the Government said in a statement.
