Breaking News
Investing Pro 0
💎 Access the Market Tools Trusted by Thousands of Investors Get Started

German police search 15 locations over Last Generation climate protests

Published May 24, 2023 03:49AM ET Updated May 24, 2023 08:37AM ET
Saved. See Saved Items.
This article has already been saved in your Saved Items
 
© Reuters. Police surround activists of the "Letzte Generation" (Last Generation) after they glued their hands on asphalt, while blocking the central highway A100 to protest for climate councils, a speed limit on highways as well as for affordable public transport,

By Riham Alkousaa

BERLIN, Germany (Reuters) -German authorities on Wednesday searched 15 properties nationwide in an investigation into protests by Last Generation climate activists who have caused large-scale disruption by gluing themselves to roads and blocking rush-hour traffic.

Amid the protests in recent months, Berlin's ruling coalition, including the environmentalist Greens, has been arguing over how far policy to combat climate change can go before overburdening the finances of both the state and ordinary citizens.

Prosecutors are investigating seven suspects aged between 22 and 38 on suspicion of forming or backing a criminal organisation, police said. No arrests have been made.

"At the current stage of the proceedings, we have affirmed the facts of criminal association," said Klaus Ruhland, Munich public prosecutor's office spokesperson, and evidence seized in searches would be evaluated in the coming weeks.

Last Generation said all of its activities were transparent and not criminal, and that activists show their faces and names during protests and announce their events in advance.

"Do we have to experience a drought in Germany first, suffer from food shortages ..., before we understand that Last Generation is ... not criminal?" spokesperson Aimee Van Baalen told journalists in Berlin on Wednesday.

She urged all Germans to join the next protest marches by the group set for May 31 to press demands for quicker and tougher action against climate change, including a ban on the use of fossil fuels by 2030.

"We must now continue to resist," she said.

Police said the seven suspects are believed to have been raising funds to finance further crimes on behalf of Last Generation, collecting at least 1.4 million euros ($1.54 million) in donations.

Bavarian state police said they had shut down the homepage of the group's website, as donating to the group was considered illegal.

Two of the defendants are suspected of sabotaging the Trieste-Ingolstadt oil pipeline - deemed critical infrastructure and so subject to special protection - in April last year.

Other German environmental groups criticised the searches, saying they undermined the constitutional right to peaceful protest.

In remarks quoted by Funke Media Group, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said the rule of law in Germany was clear - "legitimate protest always ends where criminal offences are committed and the rights of others are violated".

German police search 15 locations over Last Generation climate protests
 

Related Articles

Add a Comment

Comment Guidelines

We encourage you to use comments to engage with other users, share your perspective and ask questions of authors and each other. However, in order to maintain the high level of discourse we’ve all come to value and expect, please keep the following criteria in mind:  

  •            Enrich the conversation, don’t trash it.

  •           Stay focused and on track. Only post material that’s relevant to the topic being discussed. 

  •           Be respectful. Even negative opinions can be framed positively and diplomatically. Avoid profanity, slander or personal attacks directed at an author or another user. Racism, sexism and other forms of discrimination will not be tolerated.

  • Use standard writing style. Include punctuation and upper and lower cases. Comments that are written in all caps and contain excessive use of symbols will be removed.
  • NOTE: Spam and/or promotional messages and comments containing links will be removed. Phone numbers, email addresses, links to personal or business websites, Skype/Telegram/WhatsApp etc. addresses (including links to groups) will also be removed; self-promotional material or business-related solicitations or PR (ie, contact me for signals/advice etc.), and/or any other comment that contains personal contact specifcs or advertising will be removed as well. In addition, any of the above-mentioned violations may result in suspension of your account.
  • Doxxing. We do not allow any sharing of private or personal contact or other information about any individual or organization. This will result in immediate suspension of the commentor and his or her account.
  • Don’t monopolize the conversation. We appreciate passion and conviction, but we also strongly believe in giving everyone a chance to air their point of view. Therefore, in addition to civil interaction, we expect commenters to offer their opinions succinctly and thoughtfully, but not so repeatedly that others are annoyed or offended. If we receive complaints about individuals who take over a thread or forum, we reserve the right to ban them from the site, without recourse.
  • Only English comments will be allowed.
  • Any comment you publish, together with your investing.com profile, will be public on investing.com and may be indexed and available through third party search engines, such as Google.

Perpetrators of spam or abuse will be deleted from the site and prohibited from future registration at Investing.com’s discretion.

Write your thoughts here
 
Are you sure you want to delete this chart?
 
Post
Post also to:
 
Replace the attached chart with a new chart ?
1000
Your ability to comment is currently suspended due to negative user reports. Your status will be reviewed by our moderators.
Please wait a minute before you try to comment again.
Thanks for your comment. Please note that all comments are pending until approved by our moderators. It may therefore take some time before it appears on our website.
Comments (1)
Brian Walsh
Brian Walsh May 24, 2023 1:51PM ET
Saved. See Saved Items.
This comment has already been saved in your Saved Items
Climate change, the big lie to topple world economies & usher in the NWO.
 
Are you sure you want to delete this chart?
 
Post
 
Replace the attached chart with a new chart ?
1000
Your ability to comment is currently suspended due to negative user reports. Your status will be reviewed by our moderators.
Please wait a minute before you try to comment again.
Add Chart to Comment
Confirm Block

Are you sure you want to block %USER_NAME%?

By doing so, you and %USER_NAME% will not be able to see any of each other's Investing.com's posts.

%USER_NAME% was successfully added to your Block List

Since you’ve just unblocked this person, you must wait 48 hours before renewing the block.

Report this comment

I feel that this comment is:

Comment flagged

Thank You!

Your report has been sent to our moderators for review
Continue with Google
or
Sign up with Email