Climate change activist stands atop London train, infuriating delayed commuters. So they drag him off the roof.

Climate change activists from the radical Extinction Rebellion group climbed atop London trains Thursday during rush hour — but furious commuters delayed by their latest stunt weren't having it.

What happened?

Video shows a bearded protester on the roof of a London Underground train at the Canning Town station kicking at a commuter trying get at him as other angry commuters yell at the protester.




But the activist was grabbed around his legs and dragged off the roof of the train as commuters cheered. BBC News said the protester appeared to be kicked and hit by the swearing crowd on the platform.

A second protester was chased along the top of the train by a commuter before being dragged off as well, the outlet said.

Here's a clip showing both incidents:
"I have to get to work, too," one commuter was heard saying, BBC News reported. "I have to feed my kids."

A third Extinction Rebellion activist broadcasting the protest on the group's social media accounts said he was attacked and "kicked in the head," the outlet reported.

What did Extinction Rebellion have to say?

"Was it the right thing to do? I am not sure," Extinction Rebellion spokesman Howard Rees said, according to BBC News. "I think we will have to have a period of reflection. It is too early to say."

The group previously said the disruption was "necessary to highlight the [climate change] emergency," the outlet said.

What did authorities have to say?

London Mayor Sadiq Khan condemned the protesters for their "dangerous," "counterproductive" actions that proved an "unacceptable disruption to Londoners who use public transport to get to work," CNN reported.

British Transport Police said they were investigating the Canning Town station incidents and that it was "concerning to see that a number of commuters took matters into their own hands, displaying violent behavior to detain a protester," BBC News reported.

Eight protesters were arrested, police said, according to the outlet.
"It is important that commuters and other rail users allow the police, who are specially trained, to manage these incidents," Assistant Chief Constable Sean O'Callaghan said, BBC News reported. "Unfortunately, there is still a risk that Extinction Rebellion will target the rail network during this evening's peak. We will continue to have extra officers on patrol and will work to disrupt any potential criminal action before it happens."

Anything else?

British television host Piers Morgan has displayed absolutely no patience for Extinction Rebellion.
Last week he blasted the group's co-founder as a hypocrite for not reducing her "own carbon footprint" while telling others to do so. "Why don't you give your computer, give up your television, give up your air conditioning, walk your kids to school, get a bike to the studio?" he asked Skeena Rathor. "Why don't you practice what you preach?"
This week Morgan tore into an Extinction Rebellion protester who was dressed as, er, broccoli: "You spend two weeks paralyzing the city of London, and when we give you the chance to come on national television to present your case, you sit there dressed like a broccoli saying, 'Yeah, you should eat plants. Sorry, that's not enough.'"
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