Two activists from the environmental group Just Stop Oil have been arrested at London-Heathrow Airport (LHR) after spraying orange paint over Terminal 5.
Footage of the incident, which occurred on the morning of July 30, 2024, was widely shared on social media by the environmental group and travelers.
Two protestors, Phoebe Plummer (22) and Jane Touil (58), entered the airport’s Terminal 5 at around 8:35 local time. They were wearing white ‘Just Stop Oil’ T-shirts and carrying two fire extinguishers filled with orange paint.
The protestors sprayed paint on the entrance hall and proceeded to spray the departure boards, windows, floors, and walls of Terminal 5. Plummer and Touil then held a short sit-in demonstration near the main departure boards.
Local police and security services arrived on the scene within minutes and blocked off the area. By around 8:50 local time, police had taken Plummer and Touil to a police van.
“People around the world are rising up to demand an end to oil by 2030,” Plummer said before she was taken by the police. “This is an international problem, so ordinary people are doing what our politicians will not.”
“Ordinary people have to stand up and make their governments do the right thing, because without pressure from us, they won’t,” Touil added: “I feel so angry and betrayed that politicians have let this happen when they’ve known about climate breakdown for over 50 years.”
Airport officials reported that the airport is continuing to operate as usual, and passengers are traveling as planned.
“We are in full agreement that the aviation industry needs to decarbonize, but unlawful and irresponsible protest activity is not the way forward and will not be tolerated,” a spokesperson for London-Heathrow said in a statement.
The global organization Oil Kills has been protesting at airports worldwide. 21 groups in 12 countries such as Letzte Generation Germany, Folk Mot Fossilmakta and Scientist Rebellion in Norway, XR Finland, Futuro Vegetal in Spain have already acted at 18 airports, according to the organization’s website.