Activists clash with police during tree protection protests at Gaustad in Oslo

For the past eight weeks, activists have been preventing trees from being cut down at Gaustad in Oslo, as part of the construction for a new national hospital. On Monday morning, police began cordoning off the area designated for tree removal. Eleven individuals were removed from the cordoned area, with three being taken into custody for repeatedly crossing the police lines.

During the protests, one activist climbed a tree and refused to come down, prompting police to engage in an unusual rescue operation. Officers climbed the tree to assist, but the activist managed to leap to another tree, continuing to evade them. Eventually, police successfully removed him from the location, and he will face charges following the incident.

The tensions intensified at Gaustad when environmentalists and hospital activists established a tent camp to prevent the logging of a 150-year-old hardwood forest in an area known as Lindekollen. The trees are slated for removal to make way for a new road that is part of the construction of the new giant hospital, which will serve patients from across the country. This new hospital aims to replace Ullevål Hospital, which will be closed down.

Health authorities, Helse Sør-Øst, announced that the new road is part of a state regulatory plan for the Gaustad hospital area and that all necessary permits for the legal deforestation have been secured. Workers began cutting down the trees at Lindekollen on Monday morning as part of this ongoing project.