A Dutch-fishing vessel, the world’s second-biggest fishing trawler, dumped more than 100,000 dead fish into the Atlantic Ocean off the French coast, sending shockwaves across the country.

France fisheries minister Annick Girardin said the images were shocking and that there would be an investigation to find out whether the incident was deliberate.

The spill, which took place in early Thursday, was caused by a tear in the trawler’s net, said fishing industry group Pelagic Freezer-Trawler Association (PFA), which represents the vessel's owner.

In a statement, the group called the spill a “very rare occurrence”.

Environmental activists have often criticised such trawlers for using drag nets for more than a kilometre long and processing the fish in onboard factories.

The dumped fish were blue whiting, a sub-species of cod, which is used by the industry to mass-produce fish fingers, fish oil and meal.

The French arm of campaign group Sea Shepherd first published images of the spill, showing the ocean's surface covered by a 3,000 sq m.

Environmental activists who spotted the fish described it as a “floating carpet of carcasses”.

Sea Shepherd France, a non-profit, marine conservation activism organization, said it did not believe that the incident was accidental, reported The Guardian.

The organisation claimed that the trawler deliberately discharged the fish as it did not want to process, a practice known as discharging bycatch which is banned under EU fishing rules.

(With inputs from agencies)

A Dutch-fishing vessel, the world’s second-biggest fishing trawler, dumped more than 100,000 dead fish into the Atlantic Ocean off the French coast, sending shockwaves across the country.

A Dutch-fishing vessel, the world’s second-biggest fishing trawler, dumped more than 100,000 dead fish into the Atlantic Ocean off the French coast, sending shockwaves across the country. France fisheries minister Annick Girardin said the images were shocking and that there would be an investigation to find out whether the incident was deliberate. The spill, which took place in early Thursday, was caused by a tear in the trawler’s net, said fishing industry group Pelagic Freezer-Trawler Association (PFA), which represents the vessel's owner. In a statement, the group called the spill a “very rare occurrence”. Environmental activists have often criticised such trawlers for using drag nets for more than a kilometre long and processing the fish in onboard factories. The dumped fish were blue whiting, a sub-species of cod, which is used by the industry to mass-produce fish fingers, fish oil and meal. The French arm of campaign group Sea Shepherd first published images of the spill, showing the ocean's surface covered by a 3,000 sq m. Environmental activists who spotted the fish described it as a “floating carpet of carcasses”. Sea Shepherd France, a non-profit, marine conservation activism organization, said it did not believe that the incident was accidental, reported The Guardian. The organisation claimed that the trawler deliberately discharged the fish as it did not want to process, a practice known as discharging bycatch which is banned under EU fishing rules. (With inputs from agencies)

Dutch trawler dumps over 100,000 dead fish into Atlantic Ocean off French coast, triggering fury

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Tens of thousands of men, women and children have been assembling in Pakistan’s Gwadar for the past one month to protest against the Chinese presence in the country. China is developing the main port and has been calling the shots in infrastructure projects.<o:p></o:p>

For months now, locals have been complaining that Chinese authorities have been assigning the related jobs to outside labour, leaving locals unemployed and struggling to make money.<o:p></o:p>

Angered over this and the 'trawler mafia', Maulana Hidayat, the man leading the Gwadar sit-in and Balochistan General Secretary of Jammat-e-Islami, told WION that this time locals are ready to die for this cause as they believe "it’s better to die once" rather than struggle to survive on a daily basis.<o:p></o:p>

When asked if Prime Minister Imran Khan has reached out to the protestors (as he mentioned in a tweet few hours ago), Hidayat said these protests were not done to make the PM notice it. "Noticing won’t fill the stomach of us poor people. After the notice, I will see, will the government work on the issues after noticing and then we will decide," he said.

<o:p><a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/pakistan-wion-speaks-to-maulana-hidayat-ur-rehman-the-man-leading-gwadar-protests-436784">WATCH |</a></o:p>

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/pakistan-wion-speaks-to-maulana-hidayat-ur-rehman-the-man-leading-gwadar-protests-436784/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

He also accused the government of being involved with the 'trawler mafia. “Administration is into taking and giving things from/to the trawler mafia. The government is also involved. I have been protesting for 29 days and the government has failed to remove the trawler mafia. So, this tells me that the trawler mafia is of the administration and government,” Hidayat accused.<o:p></o:p>

This time the locals are ready to continue the protests till their demands are met, especially the ones related to the border and trawler mafia. "This is the hardship of 60 years, people are burning from inside," Hidayat said, speaking on behalf of the protestors. "They are ready to die and lift dead bodies. They won’t anyway get up from here because they are saying they are dying every day. The protestors believe it better to die once. This is the fire inside that is making us."

<o:p>Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/why-are-people-in-pakistans-gwadar-protesting-against-the-chinese-here-is-what-we-know-436605">Why are people in Pakistan's Gwadar protesting against the Chinese? Here is what we know</a></o:p>

He accused the Imran Khan government of neglecting the locals, and instead making rich people richer and letting poor people suffer in their daily hardships. "The regional and central administration doesn't have time to come to us and empathise, and work to alleviate the people's miserable life. Instead, they are indulged in their luxurious and debaucheries. If this is the treatment which we are going to get from the administration, then the lava which is going to erupt in coming times would be unbearable," he warned the Pakistan administration.<o:p></o:p>

"I request the federal and regional administration to take our demands and situation seriously. So far, we have been peaceful and democratic in our protests but in future if this behaviour continues from the administration, the coming face of the protests, inshallah it would so dangerous and horrible, that everything would be set on fire, just like our burning hearts."<o:p></o:p>

Tens of thousands of men, women and children have been assembling in Pakistan’s Gwadar for the past one month to protest against the Chinese presence in the country.

Tens of thousands of men, women and children have been assembling in Pakistan’s Gwadar for the past one month to protest against the Chinese presence in the country. China is developing the main port and has been calling the shots in infrastructure projects. For months now, locals have been complaining that Chinese authorities have been assigning the related jobs to outside labour, leaving locals unemployed and struggling to make money. Angered over this and the 'trawler mafia', Maulana Hidayat, the man leading the Gwadar sit-in and Balochistan General Secretary of Jammat-e-Islami, told WION that this time locals are ready to die for this cause as they believe "it’s better to die once" rather than struggle to survive on a daily basis. When asked if Prime Minister Imran Khan has reached out to the protestors (as he mentioned in a tweet few hours ago), Hidayat said these protests were not done to make the PM notice it. "Noticing won’t fill the stomach of us poor people. After the notice, I will see, will the government work on the issues after noticing and then we will decide," he said. WATCH | He also accused the government of being involved with the 'trawler mafia. “Administration is into taking and giving things from/to the trawler mafia. The government is also involved. I have been protesting for 29 days and the government has failed to remove the trawler mafia. So, this tells me that the trawler mafia is of the administration and government,” Hidayat accused. This time the locals are ready to continue the protests till their demands are met, especially the ones related to the border and trawler mafia. "This is the hardship of 60 years, people are burning from inside," Hidayat said, speaking on behalf of the protestors. "They are ready to die and lift dead bodies. They won’t anyway get up from here because they are saying they are dying every day. The protestors believe it better to die once. This is the fire inside that is making us." Also read | Why are people in Pakistan's Gwadar protesting against the Chinese? Here is what we know He accused the Imran Khan government of neglecting the locals, and instead making rich people richer and letting poor people suffer in their daily hardships. "The regional and central administration doesn't have time to come to us and empathise, and work to alleviate the people's miserable life. Instead, they are indulged in their luxurious and debaucheries. If this is the treatment which we are going to get from the administration, then the lava which is going to erupt in coming times would be unbearable," he warned the Pakistan administration. "I request the federal and regional administration to take our demands and situation seriously. So far, we have been peaceful and democratic in our protests but in future if this behaviour continues from the administration, the coming face of the protests, inshallah it would so dangerous and horrible, that everything would be set on fire, just like our burning hearts."

‘Won’t stop till we get peace’: Maulana Hidayat talks to WION about Gwadar protest

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