Indian-origin man among two arrested by British police for spraying orange substance on UK's Stonehenge
Activists spraying orange substance at Stonehenge in Wiltshire, southwest England, on June 19, 2024
British police on Wednesday (June 19) arrested two people,including an Indian-origin man, after environmental protesters sprayed an orange-coloured substance on Stonehenge in southwest England.
Following the incident, the Just Stop Oil protest group released a statement saying that two of its activists "decorated Stonehenge in orange powder paint" to demand that the United Kingdom's future government would legally vow to phase out fossil fuels by the year 2030.
The arrested Indian-origin man identified as 73-year-old Rajan Naidu is an environmental activist and a member of Just Stop Oil group.
The footage of the incident going viral on social media showed the protesters wearing "Just Stop Oil" branded T-shirts who sprayed orange paint on the renowned prehistoric UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The group said that they had used "orange cornflour" to spray on the historic monuments and that it would wash away with the rain.
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Wiltshire Police released a statement saying that it had "arrested two people following an incident at Stonehenge this afternoon".
"Officers attended the scene and arrested two people on suspicion of damaging the ancient monument."
"Our inquiries are ongoing and we are working closely with English Heritage," the police added, referring to the public body that cares for hundreds of the country's historic places, including Stonehenge.
The incident comes ahead of the UK's general elections set to take place on July 4.
'Disgraceful act of vandalism': UK PM Sunak
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak released a statement condemning the incident calling 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.
The group, describing the reason behind choosing the specific location to stage the act, said that it was carried out a day before the Summer Solstice festival when thousands gather at the site to mark the northern hemisphere's summer solstice.
A spokesperson for the group said that even though the Labour Party, widely expected to win the polls, has vowed not to issue any new oil and gas drilling licences, "we all know this is not enough".
"We have to come together to defend humanity or we risk everything. That's why Just Stop Oil is demanding that our next government sign up to a legally binding treaty to phase out fossil fuels by 2030," the spokesperson added.
"Failure to commit to defending our communities will mean Just Stop Oil supporters... will join in resistance this summer, if their own governments do not take meaningful action.
"Stone circles can be found in every part of Europe, showing how we've always cooperated across vast distances -- we're building on that legacy."
(With inputs from agencies)