Cruise Operator Apologizes for Brutal Mass Hunt Witnessed by Passengers

  • A cruise ship docked on the Faroe Islands on Sunday, leaving its passengers to witness a brutal mass hunt.
  • The British cruise ship operator, Ambassador Cruise Line, has since apologized on Twitter.
  • Grindadráp is a centuries-old mass looking custom that includes the killing of marine mammals for sustenance.

On Monday, British cruise ship operator Ambassador Cruise Line took to Twitter to apologize after its passengers watched residents of the Faroe Islands slaughter wild dolphins. 

A part of a mass looking custom, 78 long-finned pilot whales — a species of oceanic dolphins — had been killed close to the capital of Torshavn on Sunday, per Yahoo Information Australia.

Cruise ship passengers had been left to look at the mass looking occasion happen after the posh vessel Ambition docked on the European island. The British cruise ship operator has since apologized on Twitter.

—ambassadorcruiseline (@ambassadorcruis) July 10, 2023

“We had been extremely dissatisfied that this hunt occurred on the time that our ship was in port,” tweeted Ambassador Cruise Line on July 10.

“We strongly object to this outdated observe,” the British cruise ship operator added in a follow-up Tweet, referencing the mass hunt custom.

Often known as Grindadráp in Faroese, the mass slaughter of pilot whales is a centuries-old looking custom within the Faroe Islands, a Danish territory situated between Scotland and Iceland.

Grindadráp — or “Grind” —  takes place each summer time, and includes the killing of sea mammals like pilot whales and dolphins with knives or spinal lance. The dolphin meat and blubber harvested are then evenly distributed amongst the contributors and islanders for consumption.

Animal activists and conservationists have been in opposition to the controversial whaling observe for years, calling it unsustainable and merciless. Many have additionally known as for the boycott of the Faroe Islands as a option to take a stand in opposition to the custom.

“Cruise corporations must take a stand in help of ocean wildlife and take away the Faroe Islands from itineraries,” Rob Learn, the chief operations officer at Captain Paul Watson Basis UK, advised Yahoo Information Australia.

“Their continued visits to the Faroe Islands inadvertently helps the abhorrent observe that’s the Grindadráp,” he added. 

The Faroe Islands have been a semi-autonomous area since 1948 and usually are not a part of the European Union, which suggests the whaling traditions are more likely to proceed except the island’s authorities decides in any other case.

Each Ambassador Cruise Line and the Faroe Islands Ministry of Fisheries didn’t instantly reply to Insider’s request for remark despatched outdoors enterprise hours.