Climate activists squirt black ink into famed Rome fountain

(ANSA) - ROME, APR 1 - Three climate activists from the Last Generation group on Saturday poured black liquid into the waters of one of Rome's most iconic fountains, the Barcaccia near the Spanish Steps.
    Police said the liquid was vegetable liquid coal.
    The three, two men and a woman, were arrested by Carabinieri.
    They risk being cited for damaging cultural heritage.
    Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri condemned the action and went to the famed site.
    The Fontana della Barcaccia ("Fountain of the Boat") is a Baroque-style fountain found at the foot of the Spanish Steps in Rome's Piazza di Spagna.
    Pope Urban VIII commissioned Pietro Bernini in 1623 to build the fountain as part of a prior Papal project to erect a fountain in every major piazza in Rome. The fountain was completed between 1627 and 1629 by Pietro possibly along with the help of his son, the Baroque giant Gian Lorenzo Bernini, especially after his father's death on August 29, 1629.
    Militants from Ultima Generazione (UG, Last Generation) were recently sent to trial for throwing paint on the Senate house in Rome.
    UG have staged many similar protests including splashing paint at the entrance to La Scala and sticking themselves to Botticelli's Spring at the Uffizi and the Laocoon statue in the Vatican, as well as blocking the Mt Blanc Tunnel, throwing flour over an Andy Warhol car in Milan, and throwing soup onto a Van Gogh in Rome.
    They have also blocked traffic on Rome's ring road on several occasions.
    UG's direct actions, aimed at raising awareness of the climate crisis and stopping the use of carbon fuels, have spurred protests from officials including Premier Giorgia Meloni.
    (ANSA).