Thousands march in Brussels against global warming

Demonstrators march in the main EU quarter during a 'Claim the Climate' march in Brussels, Belgium. The climate change conference, COP24, will take place in Poland from Dec. 2-14. As the 24th Conference of the Parties (COP24) to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change kicked off in Poland, a climate protest called "Claim the Climate" was held on Sunday across Brussels, with police saying that over 70,000 people took part in it throughout the day. According to the organizers, it is the biggest climate march ever organized in Belgium.

"The climate march is a great success for citizen mobilization, the climate issue must be a central concern for future generations, and Belgium, which has finalized its Climate Energy Plan, will defend ambitious objectives at COP 24", announced Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel on Twitter. "This Sunday, the Climate Coalition and Climate Express will challenge our Belgian leaders for a more ambitious climate policy at global, European and national levels. They will demand that warming be limited to a maximum of 1.5 degrees Celsius, as the Paris Agreement requires, "explained Nicolas Van Nuffel, president of the Climate Coalition.

"They will also demand that this be done through a just transition, which respects the rights of everyone, including employees of sectors and businesses, the people of the South, refugees ... We will go to the streets for climate justice, in Belgium and all over the world". The march began at the Gare du Nord at around 1 p.m.local time, all the way down to the Parc Cinquantenaire. Two courses are planned: one for pedestrians and one for cyclists. The Belgian National Railway Company (SNCB) announced that no less than 34,000 travelers went by train this Sunday in the capital to join the campaign.