"Anti-whaling activists said on Monday they had captured images of Japanese ships killing protected whales inside an internationally recognized whale sanctuary, sparking criticism of the Australian government's handling of the issue."

"The aerial footage released by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society appeared to show the bloodied remains of three minke whales on board the Japanese factory ship Nisshin Maru as it sailed in the Southern Ocean. The group said it had information that a fourth whale had also been killed.

The images have raised pressure on Environment Minister Greg Hunt, who has backed away from a promise made during Australia's election campaign last year to send a ship to monitor Japanese whaling in the area.

His plan to instead send an aircraft staffed by customs officials to randomly swoop over the area has been dismissed by activists as ineffectual."

Matt Siegel reports for Reuters January 7, 2014. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Sea Shepherd Drives Japanese Whalers From Antarctic Sanctuary" (ENS) [3]