Rescued Humpback Whale Found Dead 2 Weeks After Release off Anholt

9 articles · Updated · The Associated Press · May 16

Danish authorities said the dead humpback that washed up Thursday near Anholt is the same whale released on May 2 after repeated strandings off Germany's Baltic coast.
A tracking device still attached to the whale's back was retrieved Saturday, and its position and appearance confirmed the identification, according to the Danish Environmental Protection Agency.
The whale—nicknamed “Timmy” and “Hope”—had been moved toward the North Sea on a special barge in a rescue effort that drew wide attention and controversy.
Its carcass was found in the Kattegat, the strait between Denmark and Sweden, south of the area where it had been released two weeks earlier.

Was Timmy's rescue a compassionate mission or a cruel spectacle fueled by public pressure?

Could the €1.5M spent on one whale have saved hundreds by tackling threats like bycatch?