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Activists of the Last Generation on a street in Berlin-Friedrichshain

Photo: Fabrizio Bensch / REUTERS

As announced, members of the climate activist group Letzte Generation have blocked numerous streets in Berlin at the start of the week. On Monday, the police initially named more than 10 locations throughout the city, and a few minutes later they reported 21 blockades. There were obstructions and traffic jams throughout the city during rush hour. Bus services were also affected. "If possible, please use the S-Bahn and U-Bahn!" asked the Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG) on platform X, formerly Twitter.

In several places, people had glued themselves to the street, said a police spokesman. In some places, particularly stubborn adhesive mixture was used. There, it took longer to detach the demonstrators from the street, it said. Throughout the day, up to 500 police officers are on the road to intervene quickly and consistently.

»Please keep calm and do not intervene yourself«

At the same time, the police asked motorists: "Please keep calm and do not intervene yourself." The police union (GdP) also asked: "We ask all people to let our colleagues do their work and not to let themselves be carried away by crimes."

The Last Generation said there were sit-ins in at least 23 places. Among other things, exits of the A100, A103, A114 motorways and various federal highways into the city are affected. This information coincided with that of the traffic control center (VIZ). There were further blockades at traffic junctions such as the Großer Stern and the Ernst-Reuter-Platz as well as busy streets such as the Hallesches Ufer, the area of the Tempelhof S-Bahn station and avenues in Prenzlauer Berg.

Sharp criticism of protest actions

The Last Generation had announced new actions in the capital for this week. The prelude was a protest march last Wednesday, in which there had already been road blockades in the area of the main train station. On Sunday, climate activists sprayed the Brandenburg Gate with orange paint. The color attack on the Berlin landmark caused some sharp criticism. 14 members of the protest group were arrested, and 6 of them were still in custody on Sunday evening, according to police.

The Last Generation is calling for Germany to abandon fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas from 2030. The German government is aiming for a climate-neutral economy by 2045.

Since spring 2022, the Last Generation has been protesting in many German cities with road blockades in which participants glue themselves to the roadway. Drivers often react angrily and sometimes with violence. The demonstrators are regularly removed from the streets by the police, many have been convicted of coercion and other offenses.

lmd/dpa