WORLD NEWS
Was Greta Thunberg’s arrest in Germany a staged photo opportunity?
After being led away by police after a protest in Germany people on the internet were quick to leap to judgement of what was actually happening.
20-year old climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested by German police yesterday. After attending a demonstration at the abandoned village of Lützerath, which is set to be demolished for a lignite mine expansion, Thunberg and others were bundled away by police at the edge of the mine.
Thunberg was released after having her details taken down by police.
Or was she?
Videos at the site of her arrest showed officers bumbling around as well as a swarm of photographers snapping pictures of Thunberg as she was carried away.
People on the internet began to accuse the police of collaborating with Thunberg for a supposed publicity stunt instead of an actual arrest.
So what really happened?
Yes, she was actually arrested.
“We would never give ourselves to make such recordings,” a spokesperson for local police told the BBC.
In response to the video of officers waiting with Thunberg the interior ministry of the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the village is located, told the BBC that the police officers and Ms Thunberg were waiting for logistical reasons.
“They had to wait for a couple of minutes before they could bring her to a certain police car,” said the spokesperson.
They added that “the whole situation has been used by those with political motives and the real reason is entirely practical and mundane.”