Hamas report capture of dolphin 'spy'
It has been reported that the Palestinian Islamist organization, Hamas claims to have captured an Israeli trained dolphin ‘spy’ off the coast of the Gaza Strip.
Hamas commandos apparently came across the dolphin whilst on patrol and believed the creature was carrying out a secret mission on behalf of the Israeli intelligence agency, Mossad.
Israeli defence forces, along with other countries, have use dolphins for military purposes in the past, mainly since the cold war. Their extraordinary underwater capabilities and use of echolocation have been utilised by US forces to detect mines and even enemy divers.
Sadly, these ‘military dolphins’ are confined in captivity, which can cause them extreme mental, and physical stress. In captivity, this suffering causes aggression, lower life expectancy and higher infant mortality than in the wild.
Recently, Ukraine’s military leaders requested that Russia return ‘its’ dolphins, which fell into Russian hands when Crimea was annexed back in March. http://uk.whales.org/news/2014/07/ukraine-asks-russia-to-return-military-dolphins