UK police arrested two individuals on Wednesday after environmental activists sprayed orange paint on Stonehenge, the renowned prehistoric UNESCO World Heritage Site in southwest England.
\"This is extremely upsetting and our curators are investigating the extent of the damage,\" English Heritage, the charity that manages Stonehenge, said on X. Stonehenge remains open, it added.
Footage posted on social media showed the activists, wearing \"Just Stop Oil\" branded T-shirts, spraying at least two of the megalithic monuments with the orange substance from a small canister.
The protest group claimed a pair of its activists had \"decorated\" Stonehenge in orange powder paint made of cornstarch to demand that the UK's next government legally commit to phasing out fossil fuels by 2030.
The action drew immediate condemnation from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who called it \"a disgraceful act of vandalism to one of the UK's and the world's oldest and most important monuments.\" \"Just Stop Oil should be ashamed of their activists,\" he added.
Just Stop Oil has gained prominence in Britain for disruptive environmental protests, with its activists shutting down major roads, disrupting cultural and sporting events and even throwing soup at a Van Gogh painting. The group wants the British government to end the extraction and burning of oil, gas and coal by 2030.
(With input from agencies)
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UK police arrest pair after Stonehenge sprayed with orange paint
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