Pipeline protesters, law officers face off again

In her statement, Heitkamp insisted that safety remains “of the utmost importance, and it’s imperative that it remain the top priority for all of those involved in these protests”. It’s been shut down for weeks because authorities say it might be unsafe due to earlier fires set by protesters.

But the company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline doesn’t want to wait.

Police and about 400 people who were protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline clashed Sunday evening as demonstrators set cars on fire and police launched tear gas and water at the crowds. Dave Archambault, chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux tribe, said law enforcement is escalating the violence. The patrol provides security at the Capitol. A small group briefly blocked streets in the downtown area, and protesters later locked arms outside the police station and refused to leave. More than 400 protesters have been arrested by law enforcement officers who have deployed pepper spray, teargas, rubber bullets, Tasers, sound weapons and other “less-than-lethal” methods. The bridge is not far from the encampment where they’ve been for weeks as they demonstrate against the pipeline.

“They’re using everything and anything”, Tara Houska, a protest organizer, told the Bismark Tribune.

“The best-case scenario is no pain and 10-20% functionality”, said Wayne Wilansky, Sophia’s father, who travelled to Minneapolis where his daughter underwent eight hours of surgery on Monday.

Denouncing the attack on peaceful protesters, the Indigenous Environmental Network stated: “The Morton County Sheriff’s Department, the North Dakota State Patrol, and the Governor of North Dakota are committing crimes against humanity”. Protesters also reported being pelted with rubber bullets, tear gas, and concussion grenades during the standoff, which lasted until late Sunday night.

Protester Conor Handley said the conflict began when the demonstrators tried to remove two burned out vehicles that were blocking the road. The company has said the pipeline is largely complete except for the section under Lake Oahe.

The Corps said it had not issued the easement in question in a Friday court filing.

Concern that members of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their supporters could suffer from hypothermia and other medical emergencies drove Horner and Shober to come up with the idea of converting a school bus into a heavily insulated, mobile medical bunk house.

On Monday, the authorities sought to defend their decision to douse protesters with water during a skirmish in subfreezing weather near the oil pipeline.

Police also claim that protesters were throwing rocks and logs at them, and one officer was struck in the head.

“Standing Rock is the moral center of the nation right now; the real question is why there’s no response from the White House to [the] kind of abuses that would make us protest loudly if they happened overseas”, prominent environmental activist Bill McKibben said in a statement.

However, some say that the pipeline poses a tremendous environmental risk.

Morton County sheriff’s department is using a f**king water cannon on our water protectors!

According to the Oceti Sakowin Medic team, by 1:30 a.m. local time almost 200 people were injured, one elder went into cardiac arrest at the scene of the crackdown and 12 people were hospitalized for head injuries.