2 climate activists were arrested after spraying orange paint on Stonehenge : NPR

Two local weather activists have been arrested at Stonehenge in England after spraying orange paint on the well-known historic landmark.

The group Simply Cease Oil took credit score for the Wednesday motion, which they mentioned was a name on the UK to cease the usage of fossil fuels by 2030.

“Persevering with to burn coal, oil and fuel will outcome within the loss of life of tens of millions. Now we have to return collectively to defend humanity or we threat the whole lot,” Simply Cease Oil mentioned in a press launch.

The group mentioned the orange cornflour used on the monument would wash away within the rain.

It recognized the 2 activists accountable as College of Oxford pupil Niamh Lynch, 21, and Birmingham resident Rajan Naidu, 73.

The Wiltshire Police confirmed that officers arrested two folks on suspicion of damaging Stonehenge.

The motion occurred simply at some point earlier than the summer time solstice — the longest day of the yr — when hundreds of individuals are anticipated to descend upon the historic monument.

English Heritage, the group that manages Stonehenge, mentioned in a publish on X that the location stays open. It known as the incident “extraordinarily upsetting” and mentioned its curators had been assessing the extent of any harm.

In its press launch, Simply Cease Oil mentioned it wouldn’t be sufficient for the UK to cease any future oil and fuel licenses, however moderately urged the federal government to signal a legally binding treaty barring it from extracting and burning oil, fuel and coal by the yr 2030.

UK political leaders had been fast to sentence the demonstration.

In a publish on X, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak mentioned: “Simply Cease Oil are a shame.”

Labour chief Keir Starmer, who’s operating towards Sunak within the upcoming election, saidthe harm achieved to Stonehenge was “outrageous.” Starmer known as Simply Cease Oil “pathetic” and mentioned these liable for the motion “should face the total pressure of the regulation.”

It’s the most recent public protest initiated by activists with Simply Cease Oil, whose members have additionally interrupted tennis matches at Wimbledon, disrupted the London satisfaction parade and defacedclassic artistic endeavors.