Netherlands
More than 1,500 arrested at Extinction Rebellion climate protest in The Hague
Police carry away an Extinction Rebellion activist who took part in the A12 blockade in The Hague
© Phil Nijhuis/ANP/dpa
More than 7,000 people are said to have been involved in the blockade of Extinction Rebellion in The Hague, Netherlands. The police arrested around 1,500 of them. Officials used water cannons on the demonstrators.
The Dutch police arrested more than 1,500 people during a protest by the climate protection group Extinction Rebellion. For the seventh time, they blocked a section of a motorway in the center of the capital, The Hague, to protest government subsidies for fossil fuels. Police said they used water cannons against the activists after an advance warning and arrested a total of 1,579 people. Extinction Rebellion spoke of around 7,000 protesters.
Most of those arrested were soon released, the police said. 40 of them would be prosecuted, among other things, for property damage and insult. One of the activists reportedly bit a police officer during the arrest. Hundreds of police officers were involved in the operation.
For their blockade, the climate activists chose the A12 in the center of The Hague, which leads past Parliament and two ministries. According to Extinction Rebellion, 7,000 people took part in the protest. Expecting that the police would disperse them with water cannons, many participants came in bathing suits and danced under the jets of water in the sunshine.
Celebrities are also protesting in The Hague
“We come every month or every two months and every time the number of participants doubles,” Extinction Rebellion spokesman Aaron Pereira told AFP about the protest. “There is a lot of popular support for real climate action and people are realizing that the government is actively opposing this by subsidizing the fossil fuel industry.”
Protester Anne Kerevers, 31, told AFP climate change is in full swing “and we know why and it’s still being subsidized by our government”.
Dutch celebrities were also among the demonstrators, including actress Carice van Houten, best known for her role as priestess Melisandre in the series Game of Thrones. The Dutch news agency ANP reported that the series star was arrested on Saturday but was allowed to return home in the evening. In a video that van Houten published on the online service Instagram, the 46-year-old was seen in a red poncho soaked from the water cannons.
Glued, sprayed, walked
With God’s blessing and scientific solidarity: The last generation won’t let Berlin rest
Extinction Rebellion is known for high-profile protests such as road blockades and airport blockades. In January, however, the internationally active group announced a temporary halt to its spectacular actions in order to mobilize thousands of people for climate protection demonstrations instead.
On Wednesday, apartments in seven federal states in Germany were searched by members of the Last Generation climate protection group, which repeatedly organizes blockade campaigns similar to Extinction Rebellion. Accounts were also confiscated, assets secured and the group’s website blocked. The Bavarian public prosecutor’s office had initiated the procedure. The suspicion was the formation of a criminal organization.
Criticism of the authorities’ approach came from the SPD and the Greens, as well as from environmental organizations such as Greenpeace. The CDU, on the other hand, called for tougher action against the last generation. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) recently described the actions of the climate group as “completely crazy”.