Greta Thunberg Briefly Detained Along With Other Climate Activists In Germany

BERLIN , (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 18th Jan, 2023 ) :Police continued to use aggressive tactics to clear protesters from a coal mine area in northwestern Germany, drawing sharp criticism from environmental groups.

Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was among the protesters who were briefly detained near the village of Lutzerath on Tuesday after they marched to the coal mine area to stop excavation activities.

Police officers arrived with horses to disperse the protesters and used pepper spray and batons to prevent them from entering the mining site.

Thunberg and several other activists staged a sit-in protest, but later they were forcibly removed from the area.

They were put in a police bus and released after an identity check.

Anadolu's freelance photographer and reporter Kadir Ilboga was slightly injured when a police officer hit him with a baton during the protests.

Environmental group Ende Gelande, which organized Tuesday's demonstration, heavily criticized the police for using excessive force against protesters, and risking the lives of climate activists.

"Lutzerath represents everything that is wrong with fossil capitalism," said Luka Scott, a spokesperson for the group.

"Politicians make anti-democratic deals with corporations like RWE and then enforce them with police violence," she said.

According to the activists, dozens of protesters have been injured due to the police violence since Saturday.

"We are shocked by the police violence that we observed and experienced in Lutzerath and condemn it in the strongest possible terms," Greenpeace Germany said in a statement.

Earlier in the day, climate activists blocked railway tracks in northwestern Germany to protest coal-mining plans in the region.

Dozens of climate activists chained themselves to the tracks leading to the lignite-fired power plant Neurath, owned by the energy company RWE.