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Climate activists have smeared paint on the facade of the famous Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. The action in the central Italian city on Friday morning lasted only a few minutes, according to the responsible group Ultima Generazione (Last Generation).

Two of their members sprayed orange and washable paint on the entrance facade of the medieval building with fire extinguishers.

Photos and videos showed the activists removing the paint-filled fire extinguishers from their backpacks and spraying the historic facade. Law enforcement officers immediately attended and apprehended them. As the two were taken away, some passers-by responded to the action with insults and a gruff response.

The Palazzo Vecchio is one of the most important buildings in the Tuscan city of Florence. The palace was built in the 14th century and originally served as the seat of the Florentine city parliament. In the 19th century it was also the seat of the Italian Chamber of Deputies for several years. Today, the building houses the Children’s Museum of Florence (Museo dei Ragazzi), the offices of the municipal administration and the sumptuous Hall of the Five Hundred.

According to the group, the action was directed against the climate policy of the Italian government, which in their view does not do enough for climate protection and misses important decisions in the fight against climate change. The palace is still the same after the paint attack, but “those who occupy it today have lost the vision of responsibility for their community’s future,” it said in a statement.

Immediately after the action, the cleaning work started. The mayor of Florence, Dario Nardella, participated, as shown in the photos. ‘They are barbarians. You don’t protest like that,” he said after the color attack, according to the Ansa news agency. (oee/sda/)