Activists from the environmental organization Just Stop Oil sprayed paint on the monoliths of the famous English prehistoric site of Stonehenge on Wednesday. It is preparing to welcome thousands of visitors for the summer solstice.
A video circulating on social media shows two men rushing towards the massive stones forming a circle at this site in south-west England, spraying a cloud of orange powder in their direction with bombs, while people try to push them away.
Just Stop Oil, which calls for an end to the exploitation of fossil fuels by 2030, claimed responsibility for the action, strongly condemned by political leaders of all sides in the run-up to the legislative elections on July 4.
Corn starch
The group known for its highly controversial spectacular actions emphasized having used powder paint made from corn starch. The latter “will soon leave with the rain but not the urgent need for effective government action to mitigate the catastrophic consequences of the climate and ecological crisis,” he explained on X.
In a statement, Wiltshire Police said they were alerted around 12 p.m. and had arrested two people “suspected of damaging the monument”. Just Stop Oil identified the arrested activists as Niamh Lynch, a 21-year-old student from the university town of Oxford, and Rajan Naidu, 73, from Birmingham.
Party animals and neo-druids
Built in stages between approximately 3000 and 2300 BC, Stonehenge is one of the most important prehistoric megalithic monuments in the world in terms of its size, sophisticated plan and architectural precision.
The famous ensemble is aligned with the axis of the sun during the summer and winter solstices. Its stones erected in mysterious circles attract thousands of people every year on June 21 – curious people, sun worshipers and neo-druids – at sunrise for the pagan solstice festivals.
Stonehenge is the “most architecturally sophisticated prehistoric stone circle in the world” according to UNESCO, which declared it a world heritage site in 1986.
Investigation
The site remains open to the public, said the English Heritage association, responsible for its management, adding “to investigate to determine the extent of the damage”.
Archaeologist Mike Pitts, author of a book on Stonehenge, told the BBC that the surface of the stones was “sensitive” and “covered with not fully studied prehistoric inscriptions” as well as fragile plant organisms such as lichen. “So it’s potentially quite worrying,” he said.
“Shameful act of vandalism”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak denounced “a shameful act of vandalism against one of the oldest and most important monuments in the United Kingdom and the world”.
The outgoing conservative government is up against the punchy actions of Just Stop Oil, which, in recent times, has also vandalized works of art, disrupted sporting competitions or interrupted shows.
In May, two octogenarians damaged the window protecting the Magna Carta, a 1215 text establishing that the king and his government are not above the law and considered the founder of modern democracy, exhibited at the British Library in London.
“Eliminate fossils by 2030”
In recent years the government has tightened the law governing the right to demonstrate in an attempt to prevent these actions, without much success.
Labor leader Keir Starmer, favorite to become prime minister after the July 4 parliamentary elections, described Just Stop Oil as “pathetic”. This former director of the public prosecutor’s office felt that X had to be opposed to “the full force of the law”.
Just Stop Oil welcomed the fact that Labor has committed, unlike the Conservatives, to no longer granting new oil and gas exploitation licenses in the United Kingdom, which has reserves particularly in the North Sea.
“However, we all know that this is not enough,” said the organization, calling on “the next government to sign a legally binding treaty aimed at phasing out fossil fuels by 2030.”
This article was automatically published. Sources: ats / afp
