Several nations, including Australia, which brought the ICJ case against Japan, have voiced their dismay at the resumption of the hunts, as have environmental activists. "It's not scientific research, it's straight-up commercial whaling, and it's been declared illegal by the International Court of Justice," Nathaniel Pelle from Greenpeace Australia told the AFP news agency. An 8,000 tonne ship - the Nisshin Maru- and three smaller harpoon ships departed from Shimonoseki in south-western Japan. Tomoaki Nakao, the mayor of Shimonoseki, was wholeheartedly behind the resumption. "There's nothing as happy as this day," he said at a ceremony for the fleet's crew before they set sail.