A large crowd demonstrated in London on Saturday at the call of the environmental movement Extinction Rebellion to demand the immediate shutdown of new infrastructure linked to fossil fuels and to warn of the climate emergency, causing major disruption.
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According to the movement's Twitter account in the United Kingdom,
"thousands"
of demonstrators
"occupied"
the Marble Arch district of the British capital in the afternoon during a sit-in, not far from Hyde Park.
Demonstrators perched and tied themselves on the roof of a limousine.
Police try to dislodge protesters from the environmental organization Extinction Rebellion perched on the roof of the tanker truck in London, April 16, 2022. HENRY NICHOLLS / REUTERS
Referring to
"significant traffic disruption"
the police meanwhile tweeted that demonstrators
"attached themselves to a vehicle stopped in the middle of the road"
, a vehicle which would belong to them according to the police.
In the morning, it was on a tank truck that militants of the group had settled, blocking the vehicle in a street near Hyde Park.
Three activists, including Etienne Stott, 2012 Olympic canoe slalom champion, climbed onto the tank in the colors of the Shell tanker, unfurling an "End fossil filth" banner, according to a press release from Extinction. Rebellion.
"Stop fossil fuels now," reads this banner displayed by Extinction Rebellion activists in London on April 16, 2022. HENRY NICHOLLS / REUTERS
"I am aware that my actions will cause the anger of many people, but I am ready to be accountable
," said Etienne Stott, quoted in the text.
"But our government too should be held accountable for its decisions that are destroying our planet's ability to support human civilization,"
he added.
Six people were arrested, police said.
The movement has carried out a series of actions for a week to call for an end to fossil fuels, with in particular a coup last Friday which led to the closure of the famous Tower Bridge.
This Friday, activists blocked four London bridges, after carrying out actions earlier in the week at the premises of Shell or the Lloyd's insurance market in London.
A scientist of the movement, Emma Smart, who had started a hunger strike after her continued detention following an action at the Ministry of Energy in the week was also released on Saturday, according to Extinction Rebellion.
After several oil depots had their access disrupted by activists from the group Just Stop Oil in recent days, several groups, including ExxonMobil, obtained injunctions intended to prevent these actions, according to the government.
Under pressure from the war in Ukraine and soaring inflation, Boris Johnson's government presented a new energy security strategy last week that is accelerating the development of nuclear and renewables, but also fossil fuels in North Sea, much to the chagrin of environmental organizations.