Man charged with criminal damage after Churchill statue sprayed with graffiti

On February 27, 2026, the Winston Churchill statue in Parliament Square, London, was defaced with red paint and anti-Israel messages, including "Zionist war criminal" and "Globalise the Intifada." Police responded quickly and arrested a 38-year-old man on suspicion of racially aggravated criminal damage. A Dutch activist group, Free the Filton 24 NL, claimed responsibility for the vandalism, stating their action was to protest Churchill's legacy, with one member identifying him as a "war criminal." The group posted a statement online explaining their motives for defacing the statue.

A 38-year-old man was arrested in London on Friday morning for allegedly defacing the Winston Churchill statue in Parliament Square. The man is suspected of racially aggravated criminal damage after graffiti, including phrases like "Zionist war criminal," "stop the genocide," and "free Palestine," were sprayed on the statue in red paint. The Metropolitan Police responded to the scene within two minutes of the incident. This is not the first time the statue has been vandalized; previous incidents involved accusations of racism during Black Lives Matter and Extinction Rebellion protests. The 3.6-meter monument, unveiled in 1973, is one of twelve statues of prominent statesmen located in Parliament Square.