Protesters shut down London City Airport
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All flights in and out of London City Airport were suspended yesterday morning as protesters invaded the airport’s runway.
London Metropolitan Police were called to the airport around 6am on Tuesday after nine protesters formed a chain by locking themselves together and sitting on the runway.
The Black Lives Matter UK movement confirmed responsibility for the protest.
The organisation issued a statement in conjunction with the protest, which read:
“Whilst at London City Airport a small elite is able to fly, in 2016 alone 3,176 migrants are known to have died or gone missing in the Mediterranean.
“Black people are the first to die, not the first to fly, in this racist climate crisis.
“We note, however, that the UK is willing to charter special flights to remove black people from the country based on their immigration status.”
It added: “This action was taken in order to highlight the UK’s environmental impact on the lives of black people locally and globally.
“As the largest per capita contributor to global temperature change, and yet among the least vulnerable to its deadly effects, the UK leads in ensuring that our climate crisis is a racist crisis.”
Scotland Yard later removed the protesters with flights resuming by early afternoon.
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