Climate protesters arrested after painting Stonehenge monument orange

BRIAN MELLEY, Associated Press

13 minutes ago

In this photo, Just Stop Oil protesters sit after spraying an orange substance at Stonehenge, in Salisbury, England, Wednesday, June 19, 2024. (Just Stop Oil via AP)

LONDON — Two climate protesters were arrested Wednesday for spraying orange paint on the ancient Stonehenge monument in southern England, police said.

Just Stop Oil’s latest act was quickly condemned by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak as a “disgraceful act of vandalism”.

The incident occurred just a day before thousands of people gathered at the 4,500-year-old stone circle to celebrate the summer solstice, the longest day of the year in the hemisphere north.

English Heritage, which manages the site, said it was “extremely upsetting” and that conservationists were investigating the damage. Just Stop Oil said on social media platform X that the paint was made from cornstarch and would dissolve in rain.

Wiltshire Police said the two men were arrested on suspicion of damaging one of the world’s most famous prehistoric monuments and a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Stonehenge was built on the flat lands of Salisbury Plain in stages 5,000 years ago, with a single stone circle erected in the late Neolithic, around 2,500 BC. Some of the stones, called bluestones, are believed to come from south-west Wales. , nearly 240 kilometers away, but the origins of the others remain a mystery.

Just Stop Oil is one of several groups in Europe that have attracted attention – and received widespread criticism – for disrupting sporting events, splattering paint and food on famous works of art and stopping traffic to draw attention to global warming.

The group said it acted in response to the Labor Party’s recent election platform. Labor has said that if it wins the July 4 election it will not grant new licenses for oil and gas exploration. Just Stop Oil supports the moratorium but believes it is not enough.

In a statement, the group said Labor, which is leading in the polls and widely expected by pundits and politicians to lead the next government, must go further and sign a treaty to phase out fossil fuels from by 2030.

“Continuing to burn coal, oil and gas will lead to the deaths of millions of people,” the group said in a statement.