Riot police clear Extinction Rebellion climate protest blocking A12 near Zevenaar
Dutch riot police removed Extinction Rebellion activists from the A12 motorway near the German border on Saturday after a blockade caused a 7-kilometre traffic jam.
Motorway closure near Zevenaar
Climate activists from Extinction Rebellion blocked the A12 motorway near Zevenaar in the eastern province of Gelderland on Saturday. The action brought eastbound traffic traveling toward the German border southeast of Arnhem to a complete standstill. Motoring organization ANWB reported that the resulting queue extended approximately 7 kilometres from Arnhem in the direction of the frontier. Traffic management authorities closed the affected carriageway and diverted all approaching vehicles off the motorway via the Zevenaar exit slip road. The protest drew a cross-border law enforcement response, with both Dutch police units and officers from the German police arriving at the scene to manage traffic disruption on the international corridor.
Confrontations at motorway access ramps
An estimated total of around 100 demonstrators gathered in the Zevenaar area before midday to take part in the unannounced demonstration. Police units established security cordons at local entry ramps to stop the crowd from reaching the active lanes. Dozens of activists attempted to bypass the blockade by climbing up the steep grassy embankments lining the edge of the corridor. Police officers pulled most of the climbers off the slopes immediately, though several individuals managed to break through the lines and reach the highway. During the confrontations at the access ramps, officers used batons against demonstrators who pushed against the police cordon. Extinction Rebellion spokespeople stated that police officers also discharged pepper spray against at least two activists during the altercation.
- Demonstrators gather near Zevenaar and attempt to climb motorway embankments
- Between 15 and 25 activists bypass cordons and block eastbound lanes toward Germany
- Protesters hold a sit-in across the lanes with a banner opposing fossil fuel subsidies
- Riot police units and dog handlers intervene to remove demonstrators from the road
Carriageway occupation and protest tactics
Between 15 and 25 activists succeeded in establishing a stationary roadblock directly on the carriageway shortly before 12:00. Once positioned across the lanes, the demonstrators displayed a large banner reading "Stop fossiele industrie" to communicate their environmental demands. Several participants sat down on the road surface to read books, crochet, and practice yoga while vehicle traffic remained halted. The gathering took place in Zevenaar without prior public notice, departing from Extinction Rebellion's previous pattern of staging dozens of motorway blockades in The Hague and Utrecht. A spokesperson for the municipality of Zevenaar stated that local authorities would not comment on the protest or disclose whether administrative consultations were under way.
Riot police intervention and complaints
The Mobiele Eenheid, the Dutch specialized riot police unit, moved in shortly after midday with multiple support vehicles and police dogs to terminate the highway blockade. Riot officers systematically cleared the remaining demonstrators from the asphalt to restore traffic flow toward the German border. Law enforcement had detained several individuals earlier in the morning as they attempted to access the motorway corridor, while the remaining activists on the tarmac were removed during the operation. Police officials stated that their operational priority was to bring the blockade to an end as quickly as possible. Extinction Rebellion announced that the group will submit a formal criminal complaint regarding the use of pepper spray by police officers during the incident.
