"Greenpeace" activists report on Cossacks' attempt to disrupt fire prevention raid

Members of a fire prevention raid held by the "Greenpeace" and "Ecological Watch for Northern Caucasus" (EcoWatch), who were hurrying to help a rescue team of the Ministry for Emergencies (MfE), were blocked by Cossacks in Kuban. This was reported by members of the ecological organization "Greenpeace-Russia". According to them, today, the activists managed to leave for a place of major fire in the Primorsko-Akhtarsk District.

According to the ecological organization, voluntary forest fire-fighters arrived to Kuban to "help the local authorities and ecological organizations to fight fires and grass arsons." It is noted that the local authorities "have no claims against the defenders of the nature from fires."

However, the volunteers failed to leave in due time for the place of the fire, since their base was cordoned off by a group of Cossacks. "The police and leaders of the expedition" tried to resolve the conflict; however, finally, the activists had to break their camp, the "Greenpeace" reports.

"We used to always believe that such provocations were primarily arranged by regional authorities. At present, the authorities act as they support the expedition, and that is understandable, since people have come there only to help. However, all the earlier problems take place again. And this is a clear handwriting of secret services," believes Andrei Rudomakha, the coordinator of the "EcoWatch".

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.