Two activists from the Just Stop Oil movement have been charged in connection with a protest at the historic Stonehenge monument. The incident, which took place in June, saw the protesters spray orange powder on the iconic site, using fire extinguishers filled with orange-dyed corn flour.
Rajan Nadie, 73, and Niamh Lynch, 20, were charged by Wiltshire police on Thursday with “destroying or damaging an ancient protected monument, and intentionally or recklessly causing a public nuisance.” The two are scheduled to appear at Salisbury Magistrates’ Court on December 13 for their first hearing.
In their protest, the activists sprayed the orange powder on several of Stonehenge’s stone towers before sitting cross-legged at the base of the monument, wearing matching “Just Stop Oil” T-shirts. Although English Heritage, which manages the site, confirmed there was no visible damage to the monument, they cautioned that the clean-up efforts could pose a risk to the stones.
The protest was claimed by Just Stop Oil, a group advocating for the U.K. government to phase out fossil fuels by 2030. This demonstration follows a pattern of similar actions by the group, including the infamous 2022 incident where activists threw soup at Vincent Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers.” The two activists involved in that protest were sentenced to two years and 20 months in prison, respectively.
