What is Japan’s controversial dolphin hunt?

Campaigners slam cruelty of annual hunt but locals say they depend on the trade

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(Image credit: (Ted Aljibe/AFP/Getty Images))

Japan has begun its annual dolphin hunt in the coastal town of Taiji. The controversial hunt sees dolphins driven into a cove and either slaughtered for their meat in the shallow waters, or sold to aquariums and marine parks.

Some of the mammals are speared repeatedly by fisherman whose propellers can slice the dolphins’ skin. Others are held underwater to drown.

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