Police in the Hague have arrested 23 Greenpeace protesters in front of the headquarters of the Anglo-Dutch oil company Shell.

Greenpeace came to the Shell building to protest about oil drilling around the North pole. They did not inform the police or the city of the protest, according to a Greenpeace spokesperson.

Police say the people arrested will be released as soon as possible.

The protesters were partly successful in building a wall of fake oil and blocks of ice, according to the Greenpeace spokesperson. One of the protesters, who was dressed as polar bear, climbed part of the building and hung a banner.

Greenpeace believes Shell’s plan to drill in the Arctic region is very risky. The environmental organisation thinks it would be practically impossible to stop or clean up an oil leak in the region, which is far removed from the inhabited world and subject to extreme climate conditions.

(dcf/imm)

Radio Netherlands Worldwide