Tree houses in Tesla protest camp near Berlin can stay, court rules

Idyllic waterfront properties can be seen along the connecting canal between the Peetzsee and Werlsee lakes. On 16 May the Mueggelspreehalle in the Hangelsberg district, the Gruenheide municipal council will discuss expansion plans by US electric car manufacturer Tesla. Joerg Carstensen/dpa

Tree houses that were built as part of a protest camp to oppose the expansion of US car manufacturer Tesla's factory near Berlin can stay in place for the time being, according to a court ruling on Thursday.

The Berlin-Brandenburg Higher Administrative Court rejected an appeal by the Brandenburg police against an earlier court ruling.

This means that the camp near tech billionaire Elon Musk's only European car factory cannot be evacuated for the time being. The higher court's decision cannot be appealed.

Activists have been occupying part of the forest designated for the expansion of Tesla's plant in Grünheide since February.

The forest occupation was originally registered until May 20. However, an extension of the protest had already been registered with the authorities, said a spokeswoman for the "Stop Tesla" initiative.

A sign reading "No drinking water" can be seen on a fountain in front of the town hall early this morning. On 16 May the Mueggelspreehalle in the Hangelsberg district, the Gruenheide municipal council will discuss expansion plans by US electric car manufacturer Tesla. Joerg Carstensen/dpa

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