Police officers carry Greta Thunberg (centre) out of a group of demonstrators and activists in Erkelenz, western Germany, on 17 January 2023, as demonstrations continue against a coal mine extension in the nearby village of Lützerath. Photo: FEDERICO GAMBARINI
Climate campaigner Greta Thunberg was detained alongside other activists during protests against the demolition of the coal village of Lützerath.
Thunberg was held while protesting at the opencast coal mine of Garzweiler 2, some 9km from the village of Lützerath, after police warned that the group would be removed by force if they did not move away from the edge of the mine.
The village in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia is being cleared to allow for the expansion of the mine. The mine's owner, RWE, agreed with the government that it could demolish Lützerath in exchange for its faster exit from coal and the saving of five villages originally slated for destruction.
Activists have said Germany should not be mining any more lignite, or brown coal, and should focus on expanding renewable energy instead.
Lignite is the dirtiest form of coal, and the area around Lützerath yields 25 million tonnes of it each year.
Riot police backed by bulldozers removed activists from buildings in the abandoned village last week, with only a few left in trees and an underground tunnel by last weekend, but protesters including Thunberg remained at the site staging a sit-in into Tuesday.
The village, owned by RWE after residents abandoned it, is expected to be the final one demolished for the lignite mine.
Activists have said Germany should not be mining any more lignite and should focus on expanding renewable energy instead.
Riot police backed by bulldozers removed activists from buildings in the village with only a few left in trees and an underground tunnel by last weekend, but protesters including Thunberg remained at the site staging a sit-in into Tuesday (local time).
Thunberg was carried away by three police officers and held by one arm at a spot away from the edge of the mine and was then escorted back towards police vans.
"We are going to use force to bring you to the identity check, so please cooperate," a policeman said to the group, according to Reuters footage.
"Greta Thunberg was part of a group of activists who rushed towards the ledge. However, she was then stopped and carried by us with this group out of the immediate danger area to establish their identity," a spokesperson for Aachen police told Reuters, adding one activist had jumped into the mine.
Police said Thunberg was released after an identity check.
The Swedish climate activist addressed the around 6000 protesters who marched towards Lützerath on Saturday, calling the expansion of the mine a "betrayal of present and future generations."
"Germany is one of the biggest polluters in the world and needs to be held accountable," she said.
- Reuters / BBC