From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

The Global Agenda on Whaling.

Who's pushing to catch more whales and who's saying enough is enough?

I'm Sarah Terry sitting in for Warren Alney, and this is To the Point from Public Radio International, a daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

In Alaska this week, the International Whaling Commission has been holding its annual meeting,

where conservation-minded countries have faced off once again with nations that want to catch more whales.

Which side is gaining momentum?

Why do loopholes exist that let some countries kill whales for scientific research?

What about the rights of indigenous communities that depend on hunting whales?

What role does public opinion play?

On reporter's notebook, an historic moment in the Middle East,

a UN tribunal for the killers of a prime minister.

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio International Program Fund,

whose contributors include the Ford Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

I'm Sarah Terry sitting in for Warren Olney, back with To the Point from PRI.

During a week in which two wandering whales made international headlines from Northern California,

we'll be talking about some other whale issues and this week's meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Alaska.

There's been a moratorium on commercial whaling since 1986, but even with that ban in place, more than 2,000 whales

were caught last year. What about countries that defy the ban? Is it possible to hunt whales on a

sustainable basis? What kind of scientific research is yielded from whales that are hunted under a loophole in the moratorium?

On reporter's notebook, Fear and Celebration in Lebanon,

...