Greenpeace detainees. New footage of arrest

Lawyers representing the 30 Greenpeace activists who were arrested following a protest against an arctic drilling platform say they will appeal to the European Court of Human Rights if the appeal against their arrest is unsuccessful at the regional court in Murmansk. Their appeal in Murmansk will be heard on the 8th of October.

The group are charged with piracy offences. Their ship, the Arctic Sunrise, was intercepeted as it was sailing toward the Prirazlomanya oil rig in the Pechora sea. Russian border guards seized a number of activists as they tried to get on board the rig, which is owned by Gazprom. The ship itself was forced back to Murmansk.

Greenpeace say that the piracy charges are absurd. If they are found guilty they could face up to 15 years in prison. There are 18 different nationalities among the protestors including 6 Britons.