Saboteurs wearing balaclavas disrupt Dales grouse shoot

Hunt saboteurs disrupting grouse shoot in the Dales.

Hunt saboteurs wearing balaclavas tried to disrupt a grouse shoot in the Dales on Saturday.

Approximately 60 to 70 saboteurs took part in the action in Swaledale.

Police were called after the protesters gathered in the centre of Reeth and followed the shooting party onto the moors.

This story continues after the adverts:

Dalesport, which runs shoots, said the saboteurs tried to stone shoot vehicles and intimidate shoot staff.

A spokesman said: “It was a shocking encounter in this tranquil area of the national park.

“Half the sabs were dressed in black with balaclavas in an attempt to prevent their identity.

“The police arrived to disperse them but not before further threats were made to the shoot staff.”

The West Yorkshire Hunt Saboteurs, who joined activists from all over the country, said the sabotage was a great success.

A member of the group said: “Activists from the Hunt Saboteurs Association set out to disrupt the shoot and prevent animals from being killed and that’s exactly what we did.

“The shoot was forced to pack up and leave the moors early today and the lives of countless birds were saved.”

A villager from Reeth said: “It was quite scary as the protesters had balaclavas on and there were so many police cars and vans.

“It’s a shame as there was a family fun day for guide dogs on and that was spoilt.”

However, a spokesman for the fun day said the saboteurs had spent a lot of money with them and the event had been a big success.

Police were called to disperse saboteurs in Reeth

A visitor from Richmond, who was walking her dogs in the area, said: “When the protesters and police arrived it was very unnerving especially for families as nobody knew what was going on at first.

“I didn’t see any trouble or raised voices but I can understand people feeling a bit worried because of the way they looked.”

The Hunt Saboteurs Association advised on its Facebook page that 70 saboteurs had ‘just packed up a grouse shoot on the Yorkshire Dales’ and shared photos and a post from the Nottingham Hunt Saboteurs.

On their post, Nottingham Hunt Saboteurs said: “Lots of very unhappy shooters and lots of grouse who live to see another day.”

A spokesperson for North Yorkshire Police said: “Police attended reports of an altercation in Reeth on Saturday afternoon involving protesters and a grouse shoot.

“We know there are very different views about this issue – as the local police we are there to keep the peace and make sure everyone is safe.

“Officers attended from about 2.30pm to 4.30pm, and there were no offences identified and no arrests.”

 

16 Comments

  1. The headline should read ” civilised non violent anti sadists show their disgust at the sadistic individuals who take pleasure from killing for fun ” …well done everyone in stopping this activity that has no place in a modern society

  2. Well done sabs. Heroes one and all. Grouse shooting is bad for wildlife and bad for the environment and should be banned completely.

  3. A good job well done and despite the dark undertones of you header, NOTHING happened outside of the law. Congratulations to all the HSA members involved.

  4. This is good news , more defenseless animals get to live .Plenty of choice in sports other than killing ,Saboteurs can look a bit scary with balaclavas but they are there to protect wildlife so are no risk to the public

  5. “Half the sabs were dressed in black with balaclavas in an attempt to prevent their identity.”
    lol

  6. Nothing is more scary than a mob of gun totting hunters, yet an unarmed peaceful group of people are called scary.

    They are in fact heroes who likely saved hundreds if not a thousand birds lives.

  7. Any photographic evidence please of Saboteurs wearing balaclavas or trying to stone shoot vehicles or is this just hearsay?

  8. Any photographic evidence of Saboteurs wearing Balaclavas or trying to stone vehicles or is this just hearsay.

  9. It’s rubbish that sabs are intimidating.
    They save all lives at all hunts including the hounds at fox hunts.
    Hunt supporters wear balaclavas and always use violence. Plenty of proof of this in full length videos

  10. These stupid Saboteurs need to get a life! Shooting brings in a lot of money and jobs.. it’s a way of life for us🔫🦆

  11. Were any arrests made and did the police order the removal of face coverings, if not why not?

Comments are closed.