Five anti-war activists have chained themselves inside the Irish Embassy in London in protest at the upcoming trial of those charged with damaging a US military aircraft at Shannon Airport.
The three men and two women forced their way through a set of security doors at the Grosvenor Place address just after the Embassy opened for business this morning.
One man chained himself to the doors while the others chained themselves together.
An Embassy official said the protest was peaceful and the group were calmly negotiating with police.
He said they had handed in letter of protest to Embassy officials claiming that those on trial for damaging the US aircraft had been upholding international law and that the charges should be dropped.
The letter is also understood to accuse the Government of breaching its long-standing neutrality by allowing US military aircraft land in Shannon.
Outside the Embassy a number of demonstrators held a large banner reading 'Pitstop Ploughshares: Not Guilty'.
A spokesman said: "The Pitstop Ploughshares - who damaged the plane at Shannon airport — acted to uphold International Law, and to prevent Irish complicity in genocide."
Five members of the international Catholic Worker Movement are due court next week charged with causing criminal damage to a US plane at Shannon on February 3rd, 2003.
The five - Karen Fallon, Ciaron O'Reilly, Damien Moran, Nuin Dunlop and Deirdre Clancy - are to appear in a Dublin court on March 7th next.
