German police on Sunday completed the eviction of the mining village of Lützerath, occupied by hundreds of activists who wanted to prevent the demolition of the town for the expansion of an open-pit coal mine.
«There are no activists left in the village of Lützerath,» the police announced after incidents on Saturday, when officers were unable to prevent a mass protest rally attended by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg.
Most of the buildings in the village were demolished during the day, according to the police, so that RWE would now be free to excavate the coal lying under Lützerath.
Police and protesters have accused each other of violence in Saturday’s riots. Police have reported 70 injured officers and nine activists were taken by ambulance to hospitals. The protesters claim that dozens are injured, some with serious injuries that could even be life-threatening.
Up to twelve demonstrators have been arrested and 30 official vehicles have been damaged, eight with broken mirrors, graffiti and stoned. Up to 32 tires of police vehicles have been slashed.
In addition, the police report that a thousand «rioters» on the fringes of the demonstration, most of them masked, tried to enter the cordoned-off area of Lützerath, so water cannons, pepper spray and baton charges were used to repel them.
This same Sunday there has been a new rally to try to stop the demolition in which Thunberg and the German Luisa Neubauer have participated.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
