Greta Thunberg joins march on German village in protest against coal mine expansion

Clashes break out as police attempt to clear cordoned off site

Protesters confront police in riot gear near the settlement of Luetzerath near Erkelenz, Germany. Getty.

More than 10,000 protestors - including climate activist Greta Thunberg - marched through mud and rain to the German village of Luetzerath on Saturday, according to a police estimate, demonstrating against the expansion of an opencast lignite mine.

The clearing of the village in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia was agreed between RWE and the government in a deal that allowed the energy giant to demolish Lutzerath in exchange for its faster exit from coal and saving five villages originally slated for destruction.

There were clashes between some protesters and police, with hundreds defying an order to leave the cordoned off site, braving the mud, rain and later the darkness.

Police used water cannons against "violent" protesters, a police spokesman said. But by the early evening, the site was calm again as the protesters gradually left.

Ms Thunberg marched at the front of a procession of demonstrators who converged on the village, showing support for activists occupying it in protest.

"That the German government is making deals and compromises with fossil fuel companies such as RWE is shameful," she said from a podium.

"Germany, as one of the biggest polluters in the world, has an enormous responsibility," she added.

Earlier this week, police cleared out protesters from buildings they have occupied for almost two years in attempt to stop the nearby mine's expansion.

On Saturday, only few remained camping out in treehouses and an underground tunnel, but thousands turned up to protest against the mine, which activists say symbolises Berlin's failing climate policy.

The president of North Rhine-Westphalia told German radio Deutschlandfunk on Saturday that energy politics was "not always pretty" but that the coal was needed more than ever in light of the energy crisis confronting Europe's biggest economy.

Earlier Economy Minister Robert Habeck told Spiegel on Friday that Lutzerath was the "wrong symbol" to protest against.

"It is the last place where brown coal will be mined - not a symbol for more-of-the-same, but for the final frontier."

But activists have said Germany should not be mining any more lignite and focus on expanding renewable energy instead.