Eight activists from the "Nuke free zone" campaign were arrested on Sunday morning, after they broke into the Kleine-Brogel aerial military base. They stole American warheads "that had been illegally stored there for over 60 years", according to non-governmental organisation Act for Peace. The warheads were given to other activists and will be taken back to Brussels. The plan is to give them to Heads of State during the next NATO summit on the 11th and 12th of July.
The activists say their operation was "a great success for nuclear disarmament" and "a clear message for the federal government: we desperately need a plan to get all nuclear weapons out of Belgium and to sign the NATO treaty banning nuclear weapons".
"With the treaty banning nuclear weapons, which exists because of Ican (2017 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize), we have a real opportunity to ban nuclear weapons at international level and eradicate the threat they pose to humanity", says Act for Peace.
Activists have criticised the upcoming NATO summit and say that "29 Heads of State will make major political decisions without any democratic processes. But these decisions threaten the security of the entire planet". It's time to say "no to the mismanagement of nuclear weapons" that "cost billions" and contribute to "a nuclear arms race".
The group has already announced demonstrations and peace movement on the 11th and 12th of July, as a kind of counter-summit. They also think "it's time to get rid of NATO".
Brussels Ecolo MP Zoé Genot was among the eight activists arrested.
The Brussels Times
