Merkel under pressure!

Anti-nuclear protests in Berlin

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BERLIN

Greenpeace protesters have rappelled from the roof of Chancellor Angela Merkel's party headquarters and hung a massive anti-nuclear banner over the facade as parliament debates government plans to extend the lives of Germany's nuclear power plants.

Merkel wants to roll back plans to close all of Germany's 17 nuclear plants by 2021. She proposes instead to extend their use by an average 12 years to keep energy supplies inexpensive and steady as the country moves toward an increasing dependence on renewable sources.

Opponents accuse the government of pandering to energy companies. Thursday's Greenpeace banner accused Merkel's party of shaping "policies for the nuclear industry."

The proposal is widely expected to pass parliament's lower house.