Campaigners protest at Shannon

Hundreds of people protested today to highlight the number of US troops passing through Shannon Airport en route to Iraq.

Members of the Irish Anti-War Movement said they were showing their opposition to the Government allowing US military aircraft refuelling stops at the airport.

One of the protest leaders, Richard Boyd Barrett, said: “Despite the clear majority of the Irish population who are opposed to the US presence in Shannon the Government has allowed the numbers passing through to increase.”

Mr Boyd Barrett said they were driven to protest over the past few weeks after it was revealed that 120,000 US soldiers have passed through Shannon so far this year, the same figure that passed through in all of last year.

The latest figures from the airport authority revealed that up to 1,000 US troops are passing through Shannon Airport daily en route to the Middle East and other US bases.

As the figures emerged, transport minister Martin Cullen said the stop overs were simply for re-fuelling purposes and had been the long-standing practice of the Government to allow them.

Mr Boyd Barrett said the groups had also been moved to protest over the worsening situation in the Iraqi city of Fallujah.

“The Government has a direct hand in it and has responsibilities as it has facilitated the US war machine,” he alleged.

Mr Boyd Barrett also claimed that the Government had instilled fear in the population of Shannon town that the removal of the US Air Force stop-overs might threaten jobs.

He said the protesters had canvassed residents opinion on the refuelling stop-overs.

The groups protesting at Shannon Airport included the Irish Anti-War Movement, the NGO Peace Alliance and the Peace and Neutrality Alliance.