Europe fails to agree on bluefin tuna ban

Extinction feared after Mediterranean bloc refuses to go along

BRUSSELS – A sharply divided European Union failed Tuesday to protect the threatened bluefin tuna, as the bloc’s Mediterranean nations refused to back even a temporary a ban on catching the fish prized by sushi aficionados.

The EU’s executive commission urged EU governments to agree to a temporary ban until the stocks recovered but Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Spain, France and Italy

For environmentalists, the move means a further step toward the bluefin tuna’s commercial extinction.

MSNBC