British Police Take Control of Illegal Travellers Camp

Posted October 19th, 2011 at 7:40 pm (UTC-5)
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British police needed sledgehammers and taser guns to take control of an illegal settlement of Irish travellers east of London.

Police moved in early Wednesday to evict the settlers, who lost a series of court battles to stay in the camp where they had lived for more than a decade.

Officers were met with a barrage of bricks, bottles of liquid, and other missiles. They also had to tear down a hastily built barricade of tires, pieces of wood, and old furniture to get into the camp.

The Irish nomads who call themselves “The Travellers,” moved onto a farm about 50 kilometers from London 10 years ago. Local authorities tried to drive them off, saying they had no permission to live there.

Many of the travellers say they have nowhere else to live. They likened the British police action to evict them to ethnic cleansing.