Fifteen Greenpeace volunteers from around the world are in custody after their action which delayed the Star Wars missile test at Vandenberg Airforce Base in California yesterday.
Four swimmers, from the U.S. and the UK were taken into custody after they surfed on boogie boards onto the beach at the base. A further 11 members of four boat crews, including two divers, were arrested by the FBI, after the boats entered the missile launch exclusion zone. A videographer and photographer were also detained, as well as a driver, despite only being independent witnesses to the action. The U.S authorities have so far refused to give details of any charges or the location of the detainees.
The activists forced the base commander to delay the test for forty minutes while they were pursued in the exclusion zone by two coastguard vessels, a navy vessel and a helicopter. The missile was subsequently launched while the activists were still in the danger zone.
The nationalities of those arrested are: UK, U.S, German, Swedish, Indian, Australian and Canadian. In the Marshall Islands, where the
