Ottendorf-Okrilla (dpa / sn) - The clearing of the Heidebogen forest near Ottendorf-Okrilla north of Dresden has begun. "The assembly authority has just dissolved the assembly and the Sachsenforst has declared a ban on staying and entering the forest area," said a police spokeswoman on Twitter on Wednesday morning. According to a dpa reporter on site, barricades should first be cleared and ditches filled in so that the technology required for the clearance can be brought to the site.
In the Heidebogen - called Heibo in local parlance - climate activists and nature conservationists have been holed up for about a year and a half to protest against gravel mining. According to the current legal situation, a 7.5-hectare piece of forest is to be cleared for this purpose by the end of February. The police operation is intended to secure both the demonstrations and the forestry work. Both could possibly also take place in parallel. The police suspect 50 to 60 people in the camp.
According to the information, the police initially tried to cordon off the area on Wednesday so that no other people could enter the forest. According to them, several dozen activists are on site - about 25 of them have holed up in tree houses. In addition, Greens members of the Bundestag and parliamentary representatives are on site. They want to see if everything is going proportionately.
