Antarctica

      Between 1940 and 1945, sixty-one German cities with a total population of
      25 millions were destroyed or devastated in a bombing campaign initiated
      by the British government. Destruction on this scale had no other purpose
      than the indiscriminate mass murder of as many German people as possible
      quite regardless of their civilian status. It led to retaliatory bombing
      resulting in 60,000 British dead and 86,000 injured.

As predicted by both Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd with their ships heading to port low on fuel, the whalers have returned to their bloody trade of slaughtering whales, killing at least 5 according to early reports from the Oceanic Viking passed on by Greenpeace. Sea Shepherd are vowing to refuel and return to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary to stop whaling again this season.

Sea Shepherd has challenged the Japanese surveillance vessel shadowing them, and has criticised the efforts of Greenpeace to disrupt the refuelling of the Nisshin Maru whaling factory ship. The refuelling procedure was done in the Antarctic Treaty System Zone in violation of that treaty, which Japan is a signatory to.

Related: Greenpeace delays Whalers refuelling in Antarctic Treaty zone (Video) | Australia nationalism uses anti- whaling to build up its territorial claims over 42% of Antarctica | Tokyo: Whaling Company served with Court orders

The Nisshin Maru whaling factory ship met with the Panamanian-registered supply ship Oriental Bluebird in the Southern Ocean near Antarctica to refuel and transfer frozen whale meat. When they attempted to come alongside Greenpeace attempted to stop the refueling by placing their inflatable boats between the factory ship and refueling vessel, hindering the refuelling for a time.

Related: Video: Greenpeace disrupting Refuelling

Australia with a small population of only 21 million out of a world population of about 6 .5 billion people already claims ownership over a whole continent (unpaid for) and exercises claimed control over its continental shelf and its fishing and enforces exclusive economic zones.

It wants more control over 42% of another continent too.

On January 15 in a landmark decision the Australian Federal Court ruled that whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary was illegal under Australian law in a civil case brought by Humane Society International Inc. It is the first time a court of law has determined the legality of whaling.

A confrontation between the Japanese Whaling Fleet and conservationists from Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace is likely to happen over the coming weeks in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary off the coast of Antarctica.

Related: A Case For Killing Humpback Whales? | Sea Shepherd hunting the whaling fleet | Conservation groups call on Rudd to act | Update Dec 20: Sea Shepherd Halts Hunt for Whalers to seek Repairs in Hobart

Terri Irwin has granted the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society permission to rename its ship currently known as Robert Hunter in
honor of her late husband, Steve Irwin. Captain Paul Watson, founder
and president of Sea Shepherd and Terri Irwin officially announced the
new name for the ship Steve Irwin at a press conference at 12:00 on December 5th at Victoria Docklands in Melbourne, Australia.

More than 11,000 possible whale names were submitted but we are now down to the last 30 possible whale names...which ones will be given to the wonderful humpback whales currently travelling on the Great Whale Trail?

Choose your favourite name from among the 30 below and hit the submit button at the bottom of the page. You can only vote once but you can ask as many friends to vote as you like.

The voting ends on the 30th of November 2007 at 17:00 Amsterdam time. So vote now and get all your friends to vote too.