29/05/2026
🛑 Yesterday, the Faroe Islands became the scene of a day we will never forget.
At around 14:00 in Tórshavn, a grind was called and boats set out. Whalers spent more than an hour searching for and pursuing a pod of around 100 bottlenose dolphins. At 15:20, the hunt was called off after the species was identified. The last documented slaughter of bottlenose dolphins in the Faroe Islands was in 2022.
But the day was far from over.
Later, at around 19:00, two more grinds were called simultaneously in different locations.
In Tórshavn, 402 pilot whales were driven in and killed. This number does not include fetuses, juveniles, or pregnant mothers. Four bottlenose dolphins swimming with the pod were also killed. A large crowd gathered to watch. As the number of whales overwhelmed the small group of whalers, the killing took an extended amount of time and the scene became chaotic. This made it the largest grind in Tórshavn in 147 years.
Our crew witnessed numerous whales being killed without the spinal lance, the mandatory tool meant to paralyse the whale before it is bled out with knives. Pilot whales were crushed against rocks, driven over, and cut by boat propellers. The whales’ cries filled the bay, drowned out by the roaring boats.
One whaler admitted to one of our volunteers on the ground that there were not enough spinal lances, and that many pilot whales were killed with knives only.
As the slaughter spiralled into chaos, local papers sarcastically described the scene as “good news for environmentalists,” because everyone there knew what it meant: the whalers had lost control, and the cruelty they tried to hide had become impossible to deny.
At the same time, 168 white-sided dolphins were slaughtered on a beach in Skalabotnur. Our crew on the ground reported another messy kill, with dolphins fighting desperately for their lives.
By then, around 574 pilot whales and white-sided dolphins had already been killed, not including fetuses, juveniles, or pregnant mothers.
We thought the greed of men must finally be satisfied.
It was not.
A third, more secretive grind then began in Hvalvik. Unlike the others, it had not been announced through the usual public channels. We were alerted by local supporters, who told us that some whalers had commented they were pleased we would not know about it and would not be there to document it. Maybe that led to the escalation of frustration on the scene, that later resulted in two of our crew being arrested.
Another pod of white-sided dolphins was being hunted. This time, our crew reported that the whalers appeared unprepared, with only one spinal lance on the beach. They were also aggressive towards our team. One crew member reported being pushed, and said his camera was knocked out of his hands while he was documenting the scene.
The number of dolphins killed there is estimated at 132 white-sided dolphins, not including fetuses, juveniles, or pregnant mothers.
Tensions escalated on the scene. Two of our crew members were arrested after being accused of interfering with the hunt. The grind foreman reported to police that the crew would not comply with his instruction to leave the scene. While our crew did remain on site to document the facts of the situation, they did not interfere or act in a way that justifies the deportation they are potentially facing today.
The charges are still pending.
The lack of transparency among whalers is escalating with every grind as they feel the growing pressure and critique locally and internationally. Their cruelty and greed continue to be exposed by our crew, who work within the limits of national law and still manage to secure crucial information for the public and for policy makers.
Together, we will continue working to end this for good.
No tradition can justify this level of suffering inflicted on highly intelligent, social animals.
