Six activists have been arrested after pouring 300 litres of blood-red dye into the high-security US Embassy’s pond in protest against arms sales to Israel.
Greenpeace UK said 12 of its demonstrators were involved in the stunt in Nine Elms on Thursday morning, including co-executive director Will McCallum.
McCallum was detained by police on suspicion of conspiracy to cause criminal damage which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, the group added in a statement.
They arrived disguised as delivery riders on bicycles with trailers containing the non-toxic, biodegradable dye which was tipped into the pond surrounding the building in south west London.
Containers were emblazoned with the words “Stop Arming Israel” and the group protested about the killing of 50,000 Palestinians in Gaza during the Israel-Hamas war.
The charity claims US President Donald Trump has continued his predecessor’s policy of supplying weapons to Israel, approving nearly $12 billion (£9.3bn) in military sales since taking office.
The UK Government has suspended around 30 arms export licences for items used in Gaza by the Israeli Defence Forces.
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A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “At 07:30am on Thursday, April 10 officers on duty at the US Embassy in Nine Elms became aware of a group of Greenpeace protesters putting red dye into the pond at the side of the building.
“The group made off but officers responded quickly and carried out a search of the area.
“Six people have so far been arrested nearby on suspicion of criminal damage and conspiracy to cause criminal damage.
“The pond is accessible via a public footpath.
“There was no breach or attempted breach of the secure perimeter of the site.”
Areeba Hamid, co-executive director at Greenpeace UK, said: “We’ve turned the embassy pond blood-red 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.
“As the biggest supplier of weapons to the Israeli military, the US government bears a heavy responsibility for the horrors unfolding in Gaza.
“Despite widespread concerns over war crimes and even acts of genocide, both the Biden and Trump administrations have continued to fund billions of dollars’ worth of fighter jets, bombs and tanks, making the US complicit in the bloodshed.”
