London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Sep 11, 2026

Extinction Rebellion: Nearly 200 arrests over four days

Extinction Rebellion: Nearly 200 arrests over four days

Nearly 200 people have been arrested at Extinction Rebellion demonstrations in London over the past four days.

On Wednesday, the climate change protesters blocked off roads near Oxford Circus, glued themselves to a giant table and formed a human chain around the area cordoned off by police.

Dozens were carried to police vans by officers who used loudspeakers to warn the crowd to leave or risk arrest.

At least 10,000 people congregated near the rallies since they began on Sunday.

Currently, 196 people have been arrested on suspicion of a variety of offences.

The Brazilian embassy, Piccadilly Circus and the Department for International Trade (DIT) were also targeted, with thousands listening to speeches and parading through the streets.

The group gave the DIT a mock award for "making an outstandingly awful contribution to climate change" and the embassy gathering was "to show solidarity with indigenous people in the Amazon rainforest".

The table, which had previously been erected in Seven Dials, represents an invitation to "come to the table" for discussions about fossil fuel. Chairs were left empty to represent an invitation to all those who identify as female, nonbinary or trans.


Extinction Rebellion coordinate these actions very carefully.

Just after 14:00 BST about 50 female protestors converged on the road junction at the centre of Oxford Circus.

A van drew up, the back doors were flung open, and women began to unload what looked like giant pieces of pink Lego.

Quickly they began to assemble these in the middle of the road.

At the same time, 30 or so women formed a circle and superglued their hands together.

Others lay down in the road and padlocked themselves together with locks inside steel tubes.

The idea is to make it as difficult and as time consuming as possible for the police to dismantle the protest.

Within minutes, dozens of police officers arrived, charging into the middle of the group amid screams from the protesters.

And the now familiar stand-off began, with police gradually tightening their cordons until - probably early tomorrow morning - they will go in and clear the remaining protesters from the streets.

The demonstrations are planned to continue next week

The demonstrations are planned to continue next week, when the activists will protest against the links between "big finance, fossil fuels and the fossil of politics that is Westminster".


Extinction Rebellion protesters have erected a structure in the centre of Oxford Circus


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
English Councils to Gain Power to Introduce Tourist Taxes by 2028
Kemi Badenoch Reshuffles Conservative Shadow Cabinet
Firefighters Make Progress Containing Major Wildfires in South Wales
John Lewis Partnership Reports £124 Million Loss
Study Says UK AI Data Centres Will Create Only a Quarter of Forecast Jobs
UK Government Considers Higher Industrial Water Prices Amid Supply Pressures
Andy Burnham Holds First Call With Donald Trump as UK Prime Minister
NHS Records Busiest Summer on Record as Heatwaves Drive Hospital Admissions
Home Secretary Orders Police Crackdown on Far-Right Anti-Migrant Vigilantes
UK Supreme Court Rules Northern Ireland Religious Education Curriculum Breaches Human Rights Standards
Markets Price in Four Bank of England Rate Rises by Next Summer
House of Commons Prepares Free Vote on Assisted Dying Bill
UK Government Bans Trade With Israeli Settlements in Occupied Territories
UK Economy Grows 0.4% in July as Artificial Intelligence Investment Supports Expansion
Andy Burnham Becomes UK Prime Minister After Keir Starmer Resigns
John Lewis Partnership Loss Widens to £124 Million
UK Government to Put White Working-Class Social Mobility at Centre of Equality Policy
McLaren Plans £450 Million Technology Investment Creating 1,000 UK Jobs
UK Chancellor Faces Calls for Wealth Taxes and Public Ownership in Autumn Budget
English Mayors to Gain Powers to Impose Uncapped Overnight Tourist Taxes
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Government Against Bank Windfall Taxes
UK Air Traffic Control Outage Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
UK Imposes Trade Ban on Israeli Settlements in the West Bank
UK Borrowing Costs Surge as Middle East Tensions Push Long-Term Gilt Yields to Highest Since 1998
Buckingham Palace Says Prince Harry and Meghan Will Not Resume Official Royal Duties
UK Treasury Faces Calls to Scrap £100,000 Childcare Support Threshold
Trades Union Congress Urges Labour Government to Rewrite Migration Policy
Riot Police Deployed After Anti-Migrant Protests Turn Violent in Portsmouth
UK Considers Replacing Some Disability Cash Payments With Direct Services
JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon Warns UK Chancellor Against Higher Banking Taxes
UK Announces New Sanctions Targeting Israeli Settlements in West Bank
Metropolitan Police Investigate Alleged Illegal Donations to Reform UK
UK Charges Wiltshire Man With Assisting Russian Intelligence
UK Orders Urgent Review After Air Traffic Failure Cancels More Than 2,000 Flights
Merz Rebukes AfD Expansion in Saxony-Anhalt
King Charles Confirms Prince Harry and Meghan Will Remain Private Citizens
Labour Selects Former Child Refugee for By-Election in Keir Starmer’s Former Seat
Foreign Private Equity Accelerates Takeovers of London-Listed Industrial Companies
NHS Maternity Care Faces Scrutiny Over Support for Mothers After Caesarean Births
BBC Warns Staff Strikes Are Likely Amid Job Cuts and Programme Cancellations
English Housing Affordability Improves to Best Level in More Than a Decade
UK Health Commission Proposes Framework for Wider AI Adoption Across NHS
Labour Faces Pressure for Wealth Tax Ahead of Autumn Budget
Metropolitan Police Open Criminal Investigation Into Alleged Foreign Donations to Reform UK
UK Police Deploy Riot Officers After Anti-Immigration Unrest in Portsmouth and Dover
UK Defends Sanctions on Israeli Settlements Despite Diplomatic Retaliation
UK Air Traffic Control Failure Cancels More Than 1,000 Flights and Disrupts 65,000 Passengers
Compass Urges £10 Million Wealth Tax and Public Ownership Ahead of UK Autumn Budget
UK Government’s Devolution Plans Face House of Lords Scrutiny
Maldives Seeks New Chagos Sovereignty Talks With UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham
×