Protestors leap in front of nuclear waste ships

GREENPEACE protesters leapt into the sea in front of two ships carrying nuclear waste off the Australian mainland yesterday after an overnight game of maritime cat-and-mouse.

The controversial transportation of the weapons-grade material is the first of its kind since the September 11 attacks on the United States, and has sparked international outrage from governments and environmental groups who say that the cargo is a tempting target for militants on the high seas.

The lightly armed ships are returning the waste that state-owned British Nuclear Fuels Plc (BNFL) shipped to Japan three years ago but agreed to take back after it emerged BNFL had falsified documentation associated with the cargo.