LONDON: British police arrested 39 people Friday after dozens of climate protesters temporarily blocked access to the port of Dover, Europe's busiest ferry hub, demanding the government step up home insulation, reports AFP.
The civil disobedience demonstration is the latest by Insulate Britain, a new group whose activists have repeatedly blocked traffic on London's busy M25 orbital motorway.
Insulate Britain said that more than 40 activists had obstructed the approaches to the eastern and western docks at Dover.
The port, which sits on the Channel coast less than 30 miles (50 kilometres) from France, handles around 17 percent of Britain's goods trade.
Traffic was brought to a standstill, but officials said the port itself remained open.
Kent police chief superintendent Simon Thompson said his officers were working with other forces, prosecutors and partner agencies "to gather evidence and ensure there are consequences for those who break the law".
Insulate Britain earlier apologised for the disruption but said it was "the only way to keep the issue of insulation on the agenda".
"We must tell the truth about the urgent horror of the Climate Emergency. Change at the necessary speed and scale requires economic disruption. We wish it wasn't true, but it is."
Mirroring the disruptive tactics adopted by the global Extinction Rebellion grouping in recent years, Insulate Britain has blocked motorway traffic five times since mid-September.
Following a government victory over a court injunction on the M25 protests on Wednesday, the Department for Transport on Friday announced a further injunction against protesters on roads linked to Dover meaning further disruption could lead to activists being imprisoned or fined.
"The British public are rightly furious that the behaviours of a selfish minority have been putting lives at risk and causing untold disruption on our roads and now at Dover," Home Secretary Priti Patel said.
"We will not tolerate the recklessness of these few activists and the police continue to have our full support in cracking down on their dangerous behaviour," she added.
The protests come as Britain prepares to host the UN climate change conference COP26 in Glasgow in November, with hopes of firmer international commitments to prevent runaway global warming.
