Greta Thunberg, arrested in Germany in a protest against the opening of a coal mine

German police have arrested the climate activist Greta Thunberg. The young woman had joined the group of demonstrators who have been protesting in Lützerath against the coal mines for several days.

Thunberg, who joined the protests on Friday, was arrested this Tuesday while protesting by holding a sit-in with other protesters in the open air very close to the Garzweiler 2 mine, located nine kilometers from the town of Lützerath.

The Swedish activist is against the exploitation of this open-pit lignite mine and on Saturday he assured that the fight continues, while criticizing the German government for closing agreements with energy consortiums.

This weekend Thunberg gave a speech in this town before thousands of activists in order to stop the extraction of coal from the Garzweiler II mine: “Science says it clearly: coal must remain underground, we must stop the destruction of our planet”.

Thunberg described as “shame” that the German government, “one of the most polluting countries in the world” and for which it should “assume responsibilities”, closes agreements with energy consortiums such as RWE, the operator of Garzweiler II, which shows that it prioritizes profit above people according to the activist.

The protests began around noon on Saturday with a march from neighboring Keyenberg, with Thunberg and German activist Luisa Neubauer among the best-known faces. And they have remained until this Tuesday.

“We are going to have to use force to take you to the police station and identify you”, the Police warned the protesters on Tuesday. However, there are witnesses who have indicated to the agency Reuters that Greta Thunberg was sitting alone in a police bus after being arrested.