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Arctic Sunrise warmly welcomed in Amsterdam

GREENPEACE’S Arctic Sunrise ship arrived home to a warm welcome in the Netherlands on Saturday.

The ship arrived in the port of Amsterdam almost a year after it was seized by Russia during a protest against Arctic oil drilling.

“It’s great to have her back,” said veteran Greenpeace skipper Pete Willcox, who captained the Arctic Sunrise during the seizure.

“We were missing a big member of our family for many months.”

Russian commandoes seized the Dutch-flagged vessel in September 2013 and detained 30 activists after a protest at the giant Prirazlomnaya rig.

Russia released the ship in June and it took about a month to get it seaworthy for the trip home, with Greenpeace saying navigation and communication aids “disappeared or were severely damaged.”

Greenpeace is suing Russia in the European Court of Human Rights over the detention of its activists, arguing it breached their right to freedom of expression.

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