Culturicide

Point 1) The Lebanese Ministry of Culture has asked UNESCO to take measures to protect Lebanese cultural sites, especially those listed as World Heritage sites. These sites are threatened by recent Israeli attacks, which have affected historic villages and natural sites such as olive groves and vineyards. Several religious monuments and historical buildings, such as the Citadel of Tebnine and archaeological sites in Baalbek, have also been damaged. The ministry is calling for strengthened protection measures.

Point 2) On October 10, two pro-Palestinian activists from the organization Youth Demand, Jay Hallay (23 years old) and Monday Malaki Rosenfeld (21 years old), staged a symbolic action at the National Gallery in London to denounce the ongoing war in Gaza. They covered the famous painting Motherhood (1901) by Pablo Picasso with a poignant photograph of a Palestinian mother holding her bloodied child in a hospital after an Israeli attack. This image, taken by Palestinian journalist Ali Jadallah, has become a symbol of the civilian suffering in the Gaza Strip.

After attaching the photograph to the glass protecting Picasso’s painting, Rosenfeld poured red paint on the museum floor to symbolize the blood spilled during the attacks. The activists were quickly apprehended by the police after museum guards raised the alarm. According to reports, Picasso’s painting was not damaged.

During the intervention, Jay Hallay chanted “Free Palestine”, while Rosenfeld revealed a t-shirt bearing the message “Stop Arming Israel.” She also voiced her opposition to the UK’s military support for Israel, accusing the British government of complicity in the ongoing “genocide” in Gaza. Rosenfeld, who identifies as Jewish, emphasized that her action was driven by a desire to remind people that the atrocities in Gaza should not be carried out “in the name of Jews.”

This action echoes similar protests held earlier in the year at museums, including at Trinity College, University of Cambridge, although Picasso’s painting is the first work from a major museum to be targeted in this way.