Police searched the homes of members of the Last Generation climate protest group in Berlin following disruptive actions at several airports in Germany, a police spokesman told dpa on Thursday.
Last Generation said searches were also carried out in Freiburg, Halle, Leipzig and Mannheim. In total, homes of “peaceful protesters” were searched, and DNA samples were taken at eight locations in Germany, the climate group said.
The measures are being taken “at the instigation and on the application of the Frankfurt public prosecutor’s office,” the Berlin police spokesman said. He did not provide any further details and referred to the public prosecutor’s office in the state of Hesse, where Frankfurt is located.
According to the climate group, the raid affected the eight members of Last Generation who were involved in a disruptive protest at Frankfurt Airport on July 25.
The demonstrators stopped operations at the airport for several hours with some members gluing themselves to the runways. According to previous statements from the police in Frankfurt, four men, two women and two non-binary individuals aged between 20 and 44 took part in the protest.
A German airport group offered to hold talks with Last Generation on Thursday, saying their protests do not contribute to a solution.
In an open letter, the Airport Association (ADV) acknowledged that climate change is one of the greatest challenges of modern times.
The association said it wanted to inform climate activists about the latest climate policy and measures airports are taking, in a conversation. The ADV also seeks to discuss the impact of runway blockades on airport safety, it said.
The offer comes after Last Generation activists managed to breach security not only at Frankfurt, but also Cologne/Bonn and Leipzig/Halle airports. The activists managed to halt air traffic by gluing themselves to runways.
