TOKYO, Nov. 28 (UPI) -- The Japanese government announced it will resume whaling in the Antarctic in early 2016, despite a World Court ruling and staunch opposition from Australia to cease the activity.
Japan's Fisheries Agency told the International Whaling Commission it will begin killing hundreds of minke whales. The decision comes after the United Nations International Court of Justice ruled the country's whaling program was illegal and ordered Japan to stop, saying it cannot be justified as scientific research. In the March 2014 case brought by Australia, International Whaling Commission experts said Japan had failed to demonstrate the need to kill whales for research.