German energy firm expects final village demolition in coming days

Police on Monday continued to clear climate activists from the western German village of Lützerath, which is slated to be destroyed to make way for open-pit coal mining. The confrontation over the fate of the village has gripped Germany, with scenes of sometimes-violent clashes between activists and protesters leading news coverage in the country. Two activists remained holed up in an underground tunnel, confirmed a spokesperson for the energy firm RWE, which plans to excavate the site. It remained unclear how long it would take for police to remove them. The village is otherwise empty and has been cordoned off by a large police force defending a double fence. Other protesters occupied a nearby highway overpass on Monday while another group climbed a massive excavator machine at RWE's nearby Hambach coal mine. Authorities in the state of North Rhine Westphalia have defended the operation by police against allegations of excessive force after protesters over the weekend tried to reach the sealed-off village and the adjacent open-pit mine. Police used batons, water cannons and pepper spray against demonstrators. According to police, nine activists were taken to the hospital by ambulance following the clashes and more than 70 police officers have suffered injuries since authorities began clearing the site last week. Mining firm RWE expects the final demolition of the remnants of the small village to take about eight to 10 days and that excavators could begin digging out the lignite coal beneath in March or April. Company officials said that police plan to remain on site until the demolition is complete. The government agreed to the destruction of Lützerath as part of a broader deal with RWE. In return, RWE agreed to move up the planned end of all coal mining in North Rhine Westphalia by eight years, from 2038 to 2030. Politicians who supported the deal contend that the coal is needed to secure Germany's energy supplies. The environmentalist Green Party has faced particularly sharp criticism for its support of the deal. The Greens are part of the ruling government coalitions both federally and in the state of North Rhine Westphalia. 'It wasn't an easy compromise for me personally,' federal Green Party leader Ricarda Lang told broadcaster ARD on Monday morning, 'nor do I think it was easy for many in my party.' But Lang called it a strength that the party was able to take difficult political decisions.