Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson was freed from prison in Greenland on Tuesday and will not be extradited to Japan after five months in custody.

He plans to return home to be reunited with his family during the festive season, he told The Associated Press when he was released.

“I’m certainly quite relieved,” Watson, 74, said during a video interview from Nuuk, Greenland’s capital. “This gives me an opportunity to return home to my two children before Christmas.”