Swedish protester Greta Thunberg was arrested Saturday while blocking a roadway in The Hague, Netherlands, according to pictures.
Thunberg was among a number of Extinction Rebellion Netherlands activists who ran onto the A12 highway in The Hague and were arrested nearly immediately by police, according to the Dutch newspaper De Telegraf.
The group hauled Thunberg off the road as she and other protesters demanded greater international action against fossil fuel subsidies during their 37th blockade of the key thoroughfare since 2022.
At 2:15 p.m. local time, police indicated that they wanted to terminate the action and that those who did not cooperate would face arrest. Some activists freely left, while others faced forcible removal and transportation to buses.
Thunberg was among those loaded onto a prison bus, according to Der Haag FM station.
“The arrests have begun,” Extinction Rebellion leaders stated in a social media statement. “No matter how many times this happens, we keep returning. Our demand is reasonable and just: end all fossil fuel subsidies immediately.
The group stated that it and its allies in Belgium will stage blockades on Saturday “to show Europe that the fossil industry and our governments are driving the global climate and ecological crisis with fossil subsidies.”
“Companies such as Shell, Tata Steel, and KLM receive huge discounts on the use of oil, gas, and coal in the Netherlands,” the protestors stated in a statement released before the event. “In total, this costs between 39.7 and 46.4 billion euros each year in the Netherlands alone.
“Globally, the IMF has $7 trillion in reserves for 2022. In this way, the use of energy sources whose emissions contribute to climate and ecological catastrophes is promoted and encouraged,” they claimed.
On Saturday, the Extinction Rebellion decried “the disproportionate force frequently used by the police against our peaceful demonstrators.”
