Climate activists deface Berlin's Brandenburg Gate in protest

BERLIN

Climate activists sprayed paint on Berlin’s famous Brandenburg Gate on Sunday, in the latest instance of radical protests by the Last Generation movement.

Berlin police said 14 members of the climate movement have been arrested at the site shortly after spraying orange paint on the columns of the Brandenburg Gate, the city’s historic landmark.

Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner denounced the Last Generation movement, saying such actions are not legitimate protests but rather criminal offenses.

“With such actions, this group is not only damaging historic sites such as the Brandenburg Gate, but also the culture of free debate on important issues of our time,” he said in a statement.

“Those who are serious about climate protection must distance themselves from these actions and this group,” he added.

The Last Generation activists are known for their extreme actions and radical protests to draw attention to climate change.

Members of the group glued their hands to famous paintings in museums and blocked highways and even runways at airports in recent months to attract media attention.

The climate activists are heavily criticizing the German government for not taking serious measures to limit global warming, but further investing in fossil fuel infrastructure, endangering the future of humankind. They are demanding urgent measures to tackle the climate crisis and abandon fossil fuels completely by 2030.