Report: Greenland seeks to kill humpbacks

NUUK, Greenland, Sept. 13 (UPI) -- Greenland wants to remove its whale hunt from the jurisdiction of the International Whaling Commission, documents obtained by the BBC show.

The commission, for the past two years, has refused Greenland's request to add 10 humpback whales to its annual kill quota, the BBC reported Saturday.

Documents from government delegations for an upcoming commission meeting show deep divisions within the organization, the British network reported.

If Greenland withdraws from the IWC it could expand its whaling hunts without international oversight.

Greenland's Inuit communities kill minke, fin and bowhead whales under rules permitting hunting where there is a "nutritional and cultural need," the commission noted, saying Greenland had not demonstrated a real need for meat from humpback whales.