Breaking News English

Two climate activists have been jailed in the U.K. for [rousing / dousing] Vincent van Gogh's Sunflowers painting with soup. The [pairs / pair] of protestors are from Just Stop Oil (JSO), an [environs / environmental] group focused [on / in] highlighting the issue of climate change caused by fossil fuels. One of the activists received a [sentence / paragraph] of two years in prison. The other will [reserve / serve] 20 months. In October 2022, the protestors threw two [canisters / cans] of tomato soup over Van Gogh's priceless 1888 painting at London's National Gallery. They then [knelt / dealt] beneath the iconic work of art and [adhesive / glued] their hands to the wall. The soup did not harm the painting, but it did over $13,000 of damage to the picture [flame / frame] .

Presiding Judge Christopher Hehir called the Van Gogh painting a "cultural [treasure / treasury] " that could have been "seriously damaged or even destroyed" [in / on] the attack. The judge told the activists: "You couldn't have cared [more / less] if the painting was damaged or [never / not] . You had no right to do what you did to Sunflowers. You clearly think your [beliefs / believes] give you the right to commit crimes when you feel like [them / it] . You do not." He added: "Soup might have [steeped / seeped] through the glass." In their defence, the protestors said that prior [at / to] throwing the soup, they checked to see if the painting was [dejected / protected] by the glass. Museum staff worried the soup could [well / have] dripped through the protective glass.