Climate activists in the United Kingdom immediately reacted to Trump’s re-election victory on Wednesday by spray-painting a section of the U.S. embassy in London in protest.
Two members of the Just Stop Oil group covered the embassy’s compound wall with orange paint, according to a video the group posted on social media. The video showed the orange spray paint covering nearby plants and dripping into the River Thames below the wall.
“Trump’s win puts the lives of ordinary people at risk, everywhere,” the group stated in a press release.
Trump defeated Vice President Harris in a historic comeback victory, securing a second term in the White House. Trump was projected to have surpassed the 270 electoral vote threshold after decisive wins in the battleground states of North Carolina, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and Georgia.
“I want to thank the American people for the extraordinary honor of being elected the 47th president,” Trump said during early morning remarks at a victory celebration. “And every citizen, I will fight for you, for your family and your future. Every single day. I will be fighting for you. And with every breath in my body, I will not rest until we have delivered the strong, safe and prosperous America that our children deserve and that you deserve.”
Police arrested the two men, aged 25 and 72, on suspicion of criminal damage after the embassy wall was covered in orange paint, authorities said.
“This activity is vandalism disguised as protest, and we will continue to have a zero tolerance attitude towards actions like this,” Deputy Assistant Commissioner Andy Valentine said in a statement.
Just Stop Oil has demanded that governments collaborate to end the extraction and burning of fossil fuels by 2030.
The activist group has been involved in infamous protests, including spraying Stonehenge with orange powder, disrupting a “Les Mis” performance, and pouring tomato soup on a Vincent van Gogh painting.