A man runs next to the US embassy pond filled with red dye by Greenpeace activists.
Activists from Greenpeace poured 300 litres of blood-red dye into a pond at the US embassy in London on Thursday (Apr 10), protesting the ongoing war in Gaza. Will McCallum, the environmental campaign group's UK chief, arrived at the embassy with his group, disguised as delivery riders on bikes.
As per the video clips going viral on social media, the protesters could be seen hauling a red container with the label, "Stop Arming Israel," which they dumped into the pond. The law enforcement agencies quickly reacted and arrested Mr Callum and his aides on suspicion of conspiracy to cause criminal damage, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
"As with all our protests, this one was carefully planned by highly trained activists and staff, with all security and safety risks considered and mitigated," Greenpeace said in a statement.
"The red dye highlights the death and devastation caused in Gaza as a direct result of the US' continued sale of weapons, ammunition and military hardware to Israel."
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Areeba Hamid, the co-executive director at Greenpeace UK, said the dye was biodegradable whilst defending the vandalism saying it was a clear message to the US to stop arming Israel.
"We took this action because US weapons continue to fuel an indiscriminate war that's seen bombs dropped on schools and hospitals, entire neighbourhoods blasted to rubble, and tens of thousands of Palestinian lives obliterated," she said in a statement.
Ever since the Israel-Hamas war reignited in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 attacks, over 50,000 Palestinians have lost their lives in Gaza. The US, a long-term ally of Israel, accounts for nearly two-thirds of all of Tel Aviv's arms imports. Since January this year, the US under President Donald Trump has approved nearly $12 billion in military sales to Israel alone.
