Just Stop Oil protesters scale fuel tanker in west London to block M4 access

theguardian.com:

Environmental campaigners have caused rush-hour chaos in west London by clambering on to an oil tanker and forcing the closure of a major roundabout leading to the start of the M4 motorway.

“Road closures are currently in place at the Chiswick roundabout,” Hounslow police tweeted on Thursday morning. “Diversions are in place. Please avoid the area if possible.”

Four activists were glued to the top of an Eddie Stobart fuel tanker at the junction, which feeds traffic from west London on and off the M4. Off the side of the articulated lorry they had draped flags reading: “Just Stop Oil.”

Initially cars were able to pass the occupied tanker on lanes either side, with many drivers hurling abuse at the protesters. But as more police arrived they closed the roundabout.

The activists, who have been blockading fuel terminals since 1 April, causing petrol and diesel shortages in some areas, said they aimed to bring their protests to the public. “This is about making the invisible visible,” one shouted to the Guardian from atop the tanker. “It’s about showing people the stuff that is destroying people’s livelihoods and ecosystems.”

Hours earlier, dozens of police had raided the London Action Resource Centre, an anarchist meeting space in Whitechapel, east London. The Network for Police Monitoring tweeted that the raid, which one witness said had involved about 40 officers, was “attempting to crack down on @XRebellionUK [Extinction Rebellion] and @JustStop_Oil”.

The Metropolitan police confirmed the raid took place just before midnight on Thursday. “Police