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Extinction Rebellion activists arrested while blockading London City airport

EXTINCTION Rebellion activists including an 83-year-old man were arrested today amid demonstrations aimed at shutting down a London airport.

A flight from London City Airport to Dublin was delayed when a protester on board stood up just as the plane was due to take off and began to deliver a lecture on climate change.

And 83-year-old Phil Kingston was among those arrested as hundreds of people blocked the main entrance for passengers – the third time he has been arrested as part of Extinction Rebellion protests in the past week.

The activists are attempting a three-day occupation of the terminal building to highlight what they claim is the “incompatibility” of the east London airport’s planned expansion with meeting the government’s legally binding commitment to cut emissions to net-zero by 2050.

An activist who gave her name as Claire, 51, said: “I don’t know what’s going to happen over the next few hours, but I do know that a number of people have come here, City Airport, today to make the statement that there are many areas of our lives that are going to have to change because of the climate crisis we’ve created, and one of them is flying.

“We can’t carry on with life, with business as usual.”

Elsewhere at the airport, activists continued to cause disruption outside the terminal, as several sat down on the zebra crossing, blocking traffic going in and out of the passenger drop-off zone.

A total of 800 people had been arrested in connection with the protests by Wednesday night, the Metropolitan Police said.

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