Greta Thunberg detained by German police during coal village protests

Greta Thunberg was detained while protesting at the opencast coal mine of Garzweiler 2, some nine kilometres from Luetzerath in Germany.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg was among climate activists detained during protests against the demolition of the coal village of Luetzerath on Tuesday, according to police.

Thunberg was detained while protesting at the opencast coal mine of Garzweiler 2, some nine kilometres from Luetzerath.

Thunberg, who joined the protesters on Friday, was seen sitting alone in a large police bus after having been detained, a Reuters witness said.

Hundreds of climate activists resumed their demonstrations across western Germany on Tuesday against the ongoing destruction of a village to make way for a coal mine expansion, German news agency dpa reported.

The protests in several locations in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia came a day after the last two climate activists holed up in a tunnel beneath the village of Luetzerath left the site.

Dozens of climate activists glued themselves to a main street in Germany’s western city of Cologne and to a state government building in Duesseldorf. Near Rommerskirchen, a group of about 120 activists also occupied the coal railroad tracks to the Neurath power plant, according to police and energy company RWE. Those who refused to leave the tracks were carried away, dpa reported.

In addition, several people occupied a giant digger at the coal mine of Inden, while hundreds of other protesters joined a protest march near Luetzerath. The village itself was evacuated by the police in recent days and is sealed off.

Once again, there were a few clashes with the police.