TOKYO (Reuters) - Obstruction by a hardline anti-whaling group has forced Japan to cut short its Antarctic whale hunt, the fisheries minister said on Friday, the first time the fleet is heading home early due to clashes with activists.
Repeated attempts by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society to block the hunt have caused irritation in Japan, one of only three countries -- along with Norway and Iceland -- that now hunt whales. The government describes the hunt as an important cultural tradition.