THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) – Two Belgian activists who targeted Johannes Vermeer’s iconic Girl with a Pearl Earring painting in a climate protest last week were sentenced on November 2 to two months in prison, with prosecutors saying their action “crossed a line” of acceptable protest. Half of the sentence was suspended by a judge in The Hague, meaning the men will serve one month. A third suspect is due in court Friday. Their identities were not released, in line with Dutch privacy rules.
Climate protesters target the Vatican’s Laocoon statue
ROME (AP) – On August 18, Italian environmental activists staged a second museum protest in as many months, gluing their hands to the base of one of the Vatican Museums’ most important ancient sculptures, the Laocoon.