The backlash against data centers is intensifying around the world, and some protesters in Europe are taking things to the next level.

More than 100 protesters broke into the construction site of a planned Microsoft data center in Amsterdam on Friday.

Citing a police statement, Bloomberg reports that two groups entered the site by cutting open a gate. At least one person was arrested, and police confiscated items like an angle grinder and climbing equipment.

The facility is being developed by Pure Data Centres Group and will have a planned capacity of 78 megawatts. Microsoft is set to be its sole tenant.

Activists stormed Microsoft's Amsterdam data centre site, broke through fences, climbed cranes, and sprayed graffiti. Riot police showed up with batons.

The site will reportedly use as much electricity as every home in Amsterdam. pic.twitter.com/EBu1992Rc9

“We understand that people feel strongly about the project, and we respect their right to express those views peacefully,” a Microsoft spokesperson told Gizmodo in an emailed statement. “However, we do not condone any actions that are unlawful or that put people’s safety at risk. The wellbeing of everyone at and around the site, including workers, staff and neighbors is our first concern.”

A campaigner with the activist group Fossil Free Netherlands told Bloomberg that an estimated 400 protesters participated in the demonstration.

Meanwhile, the activist group Geef Tegengas, which helped organize the protests, claimed on Instagram that hundreds of activists had blocked construction of the data center.

“We won’t accept Amsterdam being used for the facilitation of genocide and the creation of AI slop,” the group wrote in the post’s caption.

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