Iceland is planning to introduce a bill in February 2027 that could permanently ban commercial whaling in its waters. If passed, this would leave Norway and Japan as the only countries still allowing commercial whaling. The proposed legislation follows a 2023 government-commissioned report that found harpooned whales took up to two hours to die, prompting a temporary halt to the practice that year. Iceland’s minister of industries, Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, has called for modernizing the country’s whaling laws, describing them as outdated and expressing support for ending the whale hunt. The Humane World for Animals (HWA), an animal welfare organization, has called the proposed bill a “significant milestone” in efforts to end commercial whaling. Wendy Higgins of HWA emphasized that there is strong political and public support for the ban, citing ethical, veterinary, legal, and conservation concerns. She described the killing of whales using exploding harpoons as a tragic loss of life, noting that the practice serves no meaningful purpose and that a legal end to it is urgently needed. So far in 2024, up to September 8, 80 fin whales had been caught in Icelandic waters, according to HWA. The whaling season runs from June to the end of September, with Iceland’s annual quota set at up to 150 fin whales. Fin whales are the second-largest animals on Earth, after blue whales, and are classified as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Despite a global whaling moratorium introduced in 1986, their populations have only partially recovered. Iceland’s only remaining whaling company, Hvalur, is run by Kristján Loftsson. A previous government granted Hvalur a five-year permit that expires in 2029. While animal rights advocates seek an immediate end to whaling, they acknowledge that even if the new ban is passed, existing permits are likely to remain valid until their expiration date. Sharon Livermore, director of marine conservation at the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), called the proposed law update a groundbreaking step for marine conservation and animal welfare, particularly in a country dependent on ocean health. Currently, only Iceland, Norway, and Japan continue commercial whaling, despite a global moratorium by the International Whaling Commission. Norway resumed the practice in 1993, Iceland in 2006, and Japan, after leaving the IWC in 2019, also resumed whaling in its waters.