In a bold display of activism, pro-Palestine demonstrators have targeted the statue of former British Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill in Westminster, defacing it with provocative graffiti. The statue bore slogans such as “Zionist war criminal,” “Stop the Genocide,” “Never again is Now,” and “Globalise the Intifada,” all written in vivid red paint.

Among the messages, the phrase “groetjes uit den haag” was also scrawled, which translates from Dutch to “Greetings from The Hague,” perhaps suggesting an international dimension to the protest.

Quick to respond to the incident, Westminster heritage wardens were seen late last night attempting to shield the defaced monument with tape and plastic bags. By Friday morning, the area was cordoned off as efforts to clean the statue were underway.

The act of vandalism drew strong reactions from various quarters. Shadow Defence Secretary James Cartlidge condemned the defacement, stating, “Absolutely disgraceful – Churchill is the greatest champion of freedom in our history.”

The area was cordoned off and being cleaned on Friday morning. 

Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge said: ‘Absolutely disgraceful – Churchill is the greatest champion of freedom in our history. 

‘A truly great man who stood up to, and defeated, the most evil war criminal of them all.

Sir Winston Churchill’s statue, located only metres from the Houses of Parliament, was vandalised overnight

Activists graffitied the slogan ‘Free Palestine’ on the monument

Westminster heritage wardens begin covering the graffiti with tape and plastic bin bags 

Matt Vickers, deputy chair of the Conservative Party, told GB News in reaction to the incident: ‘Its disgusting and vile. Whoever is doing this needs to be held to account. 

‘When we were in office we brought forward legislation to help tackle this.

‘This is an attack on democracy, this is an attack on this country, its culture and its history.’ 

The images have also sparked fury online, with one X user saying: ‘Without Churchill there’d be no Britain left to protest in. 

Another wrote: ‘I don’t want to share a country with people who think Churchill’s honour should be besmirched and who physically deface his statue.’ 

A third said: ‘He is a sacred symbol for the British. An attack on this statue is an attack on the heart of Britain.’ 

Meanwhile a fourth simply wrote: ‘Disgusting – pure anti-British hatred.’ 

The Daily Mail has approached the Met for comment. 

In 2020, Extinction Rebellion and Black Lives Matter activists defaced the statue with claims Churchill was a ‘racist’ 

Matt Vickers, deputy chair of the Conservative Party, said the vandals need to be ‘held to account’ over the incident 

One critic said that ‘an attack on this statue is an attack on the heart of Britain’

The area was cordoned off on Friday morning to clean the monument

The bronze monument has stood outside the Houses of Parliament since 1973. 

It has been vandalised several times in the past, including during protests.

The 12ft-tall statue was scrawled with graffiti accusing Sir Winston of being a ‘racist’ in June 2020 during a Black Lives Matter protest triggered by the death of George Floyd in the US. 

Later that year, in October, an Extinction Rebellion activist was ordered to pay more than £1,500 after defacing the statue by painting ‘racist’ on its plinth during a climate protest.

The monument is one of 12 statues on or around Parliament Square, most of well-known statesmen such as Abraham Lincoln and Nelson Mandela.

The Government last year announced new laws making it a criminal offence for protesters to climb on the statue of Britain’s war-time leader. 

And in December both the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police announced anyone chanting the controversial slogan ‘Globalise the intifada’ would face arrest.

The decision by the two police forces came in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack, and the terror attack at Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester on October 2.

According to author Michael Makovsky, Zionism was ‘central to the core of his [Churchill’s] being’.

The former prime minister reportedly ‘became enamored of the romantic notion of Jewish restoration to their ancient homeland’, saying in 1908: ‘I am in full sympathy with the historical traditional aspirations of the Jews…

‘The restoration to them of a centre of true racial and political integrity would be a tremendous event in the history of the world.’ 

And in 1921 Churchill was charged with implementing the Balfour Declaration – a letter supporting the ‘the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people’ – as colonial secretary.

Only a few months later he said: ‘Wherever the footprints of the Jew in Palestine are found you have prosperity, progress and scientific methods of cultivation, and where there was a wilderness you now find vineyards.’ 

This is a breaking news story. More to follow.