Police officers struggle to remove two Extinction Rebellion protesters who had locked their arms into a tree trunk outside the Home Office in central London on Wednesday (September 2).

Footage shows police were seen using power tools in an attempt to free the protesters.

The trunk was said to have been taken from a forest where HS2 is planning to come through.

London, September 2 2020. Specialist police officers struggle to remove two Extinction Rebellion protesters who have locked on to a giant tree stump outside The Home Office in London. The 200kg tree stump is from a tree felled to make way for the HS2 rail project that will link London and Birmingham. The protesters say that the project avoids golf courses and 'hunting areas' but displaces ordinary people.

Using a selection of power tools, specialist officers are attempting to break the stump apart to release the protesters who have apparently cuffed their arms together through a hole that penetrates the tree stump, while other officers ensure the two protesters are kept safe from debris created by the circular saws.