Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg was among dozens of protestors arrested in The Hague on Saturday afternoon, where she had taken part in trying to blockade the A12 motorway which bisects the city centre.

The protestors had gathered near the Malieveld, but as they tried to enter the highway, police, many on horseback, stopped them.

The protesters then blocked nearby streets, including Zuid-Hollandlaan,which is where Thunberg was one of the first to be arrested. She was put on a police bus, although the total number of those arrested with her is not yet known.

From the bus, she is said to have told news agency ANP by telephone that her arrest went smoothly. “But that’s not the point, I’m here for the climate goal,” she said. “It has been promised for decades that action will be taken. That just doesn’t happen.  We’ll see if it works now.”

As the police bus drove away, there was loud applause from onlookers and activists.

According to Dutch media reports, she was later arrested a second time.

This is the 37^th time Extinction Rebellion has attempted to block the A12 motorway in its efforts to get the government to end fossil fuel tax breaks which benefit corporations including Shell, Tata Steel and KLM.

Extinction Rebellion says the subsidies amount to between €39.7 billion and €46.4 billion a year in the Netherlands alone and that 72% of Dutch people want to get rid of them.