Riot police are trying to remove protesters from a bridge leading to the base of the U.S. THAAD anti-missile system in southeastern South Korea on Monday, sparking clashes between the two sides, Yonhap News reports.
About 200 residents and activists have been occupying the Jinbat bridge in a sit-in aimed at blocking construction vehicles from entering the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense base in Seongju, some 300 km southeast of Seoul.
About 3,000 riot police were mobilized to break up the sit-in.
Protesters resisted by inserting their arms into plastic pipes in an attempt to tie themselves together to make it difficult for police to carry them away. They also chanted slogans such as "Out with violent police," blasting the police for using force.
"It is the defense ministry that deteriorated the situation like this," Kang Hyun-woo, a leader of the protesters, said. "Responsibility for all forthcoming consequences rests with the defense ministry that pushed unreasonably ahead with the THAAD base construction."
Police placed air mattresses under the bridge in case of a fall during the clash.
In Seoul, the defense ministry said it's starting to transport construction materials, equipment and personnel into the U.S. missile defense base, 300 kilometers south of Seoul, despite protests by local residents and activists.
