Reykjavik, Iceland ? Iceland broke a global moratorium on commercial whaling, killing an endangered fin whale for the first time since the 1980s, local media reported Sunday.

Iceland’s RUV television showed footage of a large fin whale being towed by a whaling boat. It said the whale was harpooned in the north Atlantic about 200 miles west of Iceland.

Iceland announced last week that it would resume commercial whaling, ignoring a worldwide moratorium that came into effect in 1986.

Fisheries Minister Einar Kristinn Gudfinnsson said his ministry would issue licenses to kill nine fin whales and 30 of the more numerous minke whales in the year ending Aug. 31, 2007.

The announcement was condemned by conservation groups and many governments around the world, but praised by pro-whaling nations Norway and Japan.