Munich airport disrupted due to climate protesters - DW
Munich airport disrupted due to climate protesters - DW - 05/18/2024
Munich airport disrupted due to climate protesters May 18, 2024
Police were deployed to the Munich airport on Saturday morning after climate activists, believed to be from the Last Generation movement, disrupted the hub in protest of climate policy.
"The airport is closed for security reasons because climate activists have stuck themselves to the have stuck to the taxiways," said an airport spokesperson.
Initially, all the flights either had to be canceled or diverted to other airports.
Later, an airport representative said one of the two runways was open but there would be delays.
In a series of posts on the social media platform X, the climate activists posted pictures of members on what appears to be a runway or tarmac with protest signs.
"A total of six people are sitting in two groups on different locations of the Munich airport," the post reads.
Police eventually said eight of the activists were arrested.
Protests come during vacation days
The demonstration by the climate activists took place during one of the busiest travel periods
for the airport in southern Germany.
The airport was expecting to cater to at least 350,000 passengers expected from Friday to Sunday — the first weekend of the vacations.
As per their own statement, the Last Generation activists intended to block at least one of the two runways.
The objective behind the protests was to disrupt the Whitsun holidays which is a peak travel time in Germany.
Oe of the signs held up by protesters read: "Problem is the government, not our holiday."
The climate activists are opposing the subsidies provided to the airline industry by the government in the form of waivers for kerosene and VAT.
The group has held similar protests at other airports across Germany.
mfi/dj (Reuters, dpa)
Related Knowledge Center: Climate diplomacy
Talks are well underway in preparation for the next major international meeting on climate change, 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28), scheduled to begin Nov. 30 in the United Arab Emirates.
Much like last year’s COP27, finances — specifically, aid to developing nations — will be at the center of conference deliberations.
The conference faces an even greater sense of urgency brought on by the Sept. 8, 2023, release of the first global stocktake, which calls for accelerated action to meet the goals set in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement (COP21).
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