ANTI-War protesters stormed into Swindon's Civic Offices for a two-hour sit-in.

On Thursday evening, a group of 75 people from the anti-war coalition occupied the main council chamber to mark their opposition to the war in Iraq.

Secretary of the Swindon branch of the organisation, Andy Newman said: "We wanted to do something that showed we were serious about opposing the war.

"Swindon Borough Council says that it is beyond them to consider moral and international issues. This is not good enough. Even if the council says it is behind the war, it would be better than saying it has no opinion at all.

"The police were very good about it. But the security guards at the Civic Offices seemed to be pretty annoyed."

Swindon's deputy council leader David Cox said: "Had they been in Iraq they would had been taken out and shot. In a democracy people can do things like that. My initial thoughts today are how did it happen? We haven't really got to the bottom of it but I know security has been stepped up."

Tomorrow there will be a demonstration at Fairford, where police estimate there will be as many as 10,000 people attending.

Swindon protesters will meet at the Cenotaph at noon and then march through Swindon, ending up going through Havelock Street to the statue of Brunel.

At 1.30pm there will be coaches to take people to join the Fairford demonstration.

Many members of the anti-war coalition will be travelling to take part in national protests in London.

Greenpeace campaign director John Sauven said: "Greenpeace deplores this illegal and unilateral war on Iraq and calls for an immediate cease-fire and for negotiations for peace and disarmament to be resumed.