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Turkish protesters halt London Eye
Six hundred visitors to the London Eye attraction were led to safety yesterday as 22 human rights protesters hijacked two pods, threatening to set it alight.
The Turkish demonstrators took over two pods at 2:30pm on Wednesday, claiming that they had doused themselves and the pod in petrol. The group held up banners and chanted in protest of violence and deaths in Turkish prisons. One hundred demonstrators handed out leaflets on the ground. Police negotiators talked to the protesters via mobile phones and fire crews were prepared on the ground for the possibility that the group would carry out their threats. By 9pm the incident was resolved and protesters were accompanied off the pods.
Since its opening in February, the London Eye has been repeatedly targeted by protesters. The latest was in October when eight people climbed to the top to protest about dam-building projects in India and Spain.