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Activists halt London trains during third day of climate protests

The pair unfurled a banner that said "Climate Emergency" before appearing to glue their hands to the top of the train at Canary Wharf station, in the heart of one of London's financial districts, on Wednesday. Police officers then climbed up onto the train roof to unstick the protesters before removing them.
On Wednesday morning, Extinction Rebellion began what it described as a day of "light" disruption of London's overground network. "This action is called 'The Pause' -- our aim is to create moments in time when humanity stops and fully considers the extent of the harm we have done and are doing to life on earth," it said in a statement.
The demonstration is part of an ongoing climate protest which organizers said is taking place in at least 80 cities and more than 33 countries. It is led by Extinction Rebellion, which gained prominence last year when protestors occupied five bridges across London, forcing them to close.
In Oxford Circus -- one of the four traffic arteries blocked by protesters in central London since Monday -- activists flocked around a bright pink boat, daubed with the words "Tell the Truth," as police vans gathered at the corner.
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More than 200 people have been arrested since Monday, the Metropolitan police said.
"Police cells in London are full, operating on a one in, one out capacity," Extinction Rebellion said in a statement on Wednesday.
When asked whether arrests have overwhelmed the capacity of London's police cells, the police said: "Contingency plans are in place should custody suites become full. We will not discuss further for operational reasons."
The group, which is supported by a slew of academics, scientists and celebrities -- including the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, British actress Emma Thompson and American actor Willem Dafoe -- has claimed that more than 3,000 people will take part in Wednesday's protests.
In Oxford Circus, one of the four traffic arteries blocked by protestors in Central London since Monday, activists flocked around a bright pink boat, daubed with the words "Tell the Truth," as police vans gathered at the corner.
"I have never been arrested or charged before, so this is new for me," Kate Bull, 58, told CNN on Wednesday as she locked arms with another activist she only met an hour before -- bracing for any new round of arrests.
Behind the boat, Daniel Williams, a 41-year-old tradesman who traveled down from Wales to take part in the protests, told CNN that he had "never been an activist before." Everything changed when a friend told him last year about the burgeoning protest group Extinction Rebellion.
"Years of one day marches and writing to your MPs has only led to CO2 emissions going up by 60% since the 1990s," Williams said. "We don't want to disrupt people's lives, but it is the only way we can get heard," he said of the third day of blockades in Oxford Circus, Marble Arch, Parliament Square, , Piccadilly Circus, Waterloo Bridge and today -- Canary Wharf.
Susannah Trevelyan, who claimed to be the great, great, great granddaughter of English naturalist Charles Darwin, told CNN said that she was willing to be arrested for the cause. Adding that if Darwin were alive today, he would be "appalled by the huge extinction we are cause, humans are causing the worst exnction event in 65 million years."
The group, which is founded by British activists, has three aims: the first is to get governments to declare a "climate emergency," reduce net greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2025, and for citizens' assemblies to lead the government on climate and ecological justice.
Williams, who started an Extinction Rebellion branch in Aberystwyth, Wales, added that the group's non-violent demonstrations were inspired by civil rights giants like "Martin Luther King, Gandhi and the Suffragettes."
"We are going to stay here [Oxford Circus] for as long as it takes," he adds.

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