Greta Thunberg detained twice by Dutch police at protest in The Hague
7 April 2024, 13:46
Greta Thunberg has been detained twice by Dutch police at a protest in The Hague.
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The climate activist was seen flashing a victory sign as she sat in a bus used by police to take detained demonstrators away from the scene.
The protest - organised by Extinction Rebellion - was against Dutch subsidies and tax breaks to companies linked to fossil fuel industries.
Footage showed the moment two police officers dragged the 21-year-old away from a main road into The Hague.
A heavy police presence, including officers on horseback, initially prevented the activists from getting on to the road.
But a small group of people managed to sit down on another road and were detained after ignoring police orders to leave.
Read more: Greta Thunberg skips to court as she goes on trial over London oil protest
Greta Thunberg detained by Dutch police at climate demonstration in The Hague
Demonstrators waved flags and chanted: "We are unstoppable, another world is possible."
One held a banner reading: "This is a dead end street."
A spokesman for the Public Prosecutor's Office confirmed Ms Thunberg was among dozens of protesters who were briefly detained before being released at a different location.
She returned and was detained again for blocking a nearby traffic intersection.
Prosecutor spokesman Vincent Veenman said no charges had been laid against the activists.
"This however may change if people are arrested over and over again for the same offence," Mr Veenman told AFP.
It comes after Ms Thunberg was acquitted by a court in London of refusing to follow a police order to leave a protest blocking the entrance to a major oil and gas industry conference last year.
Her activism has inspired a global youth movement demanding stronger efforts to fight climate change since she began staging weekly protests outside the Swedish parliament starting in 2018.
She has repeatedly been fined in Sweden and the UK for civil disobedience in connection with protests.
