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Troopers arrest 69 at Minnesota pipeline protest

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — Troopers arrested 69 people outside Gov. Tim Walz’s residence in St. Paul on Saturday in a protest against an oil pipeline replacement project, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

The demonstrators are calling for Walz and President Joe Biden to shut down the Enbridge Line 3 project that carries oil from Alberta, Canada, and passes through North Dakota and northern Minnesota on its way to Superior, Wisconsin. The 337-mile segment in Minnesota is the last phase in construction.

Opponents of the project, led by the Red Lake Band of Chippewa and White Earth Band of Ojibwe, say construction would destroy land that is protected by treaty agreements and would violate cultural and religious rights.

Protesters were booked into the Ramsey County Jail under several charges, including third-degree riot, disorderly conduct and felony threats of violence, patrol spokesman Lt. Gordon Shank said. Several buses were brought in to remove protesters from the street.

The patrol said no injuries and no use of chemical irritants or rubber bullets were reported.

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