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Paul Watson, Sea Shepherd Founder, Released After Denmark Rejects Extradition to Japan

Dec 17, 2024, 10:42 AM

Paul Watson, the founder of the environmental organization Sea Shepherd, has been released from prison in Greenland after the Danish government refused Japan's extradition request. Watson, who has been detained since July 21, 2024, for his actions against Japanese whaling in the North Pacific, will now be able to return to France where he resides with his wife and two young children. His release marks the end of a five-month legal battle and comes as a relief to environmentalists and supporters who have campaigned for his freedom. The decision not to extradite Watson, who is accused by Japan of various charges including forced obstruction of trade, was described as political, reflecting the public interest in the case. During his imprisonment, Watson spent 149 days contemplating the Nuup Kangerlua Fjord from his cell in Nuuk, Greenland's capital. He was arrested while preparing to leave Greenlandic port aboard his boat, the John-Paul-Dejoria, to intercept a Japanese whaling ship. Japan issued an international arrest warrant for Watson related to a 2010 Sea Shepherd campaign against their whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean, where Sea Shepherd threw butyric acid bombs and cut fishing nets, actions Japan claimed were for scientific purposes but were seen as a subterfuge by the NGO. Watson's release was also supported by French figures like Nicolas Hulot.