“Zionist war criminal.”
A flying Dutchman named Olax Outis, a self-described pro-Palestinian “activist,” came to the U.K. expressly to engage in pro-Hamas anti-Israel graffiti. His target was a statue of Churchill, England’s greatest statesman, standing imposingly in Parliament Square. Outis painted numerous small graffiti all over Churchill’s body, but the largest letters were reserved for the three words he scrawled in blood-red paint on the plinth, “Zionist War Criminal.” Now Outis has just been acquitted of criminal damage because, though his daubs were no doubt offensive to the people of Britain, they were water-soluble, and so easily removed. The court was unwilling to consider the outrage to the public that viewed the defacement with disgust, and may also — it’s not clear from the report — have overlooked the cost of removing those graffiti. More on Outis and his disturbing acquittal can be found here: “Anti-Israel Activist Acquitted After Defacing Churchill Statue With Pro-Hamas Symbol,” by Ailin Vilches Arguello, Algemeiner, September 16, 2026:An anti-Israel activist who defaced a Winston Churchill statue with inflammatory slogans has been acquitted of criminal damage, in a case that raises fresh concerns over the UK legal system’s response to antisemitic rhetoric and apparent support for terrorism.
Olax Outis, 39, was found not guilty at Southwark Crown Court in London on Monday after climbing onto and vandalizing a statue of Churchill, who led Britian as prime minister during World War II, in Parliament Square earlier this year, wearing a red boiler suit bearing the words, “I support Palestine Action.”
He was accused of causing more than $9,500 in damage after spray-painting the statue red and covering it with slogans including “stop the genocide” and “Free Palestine,” as well as red inverted triangles — a symbol used to signal support for Hamas — on its front and “Never Again Is Now” across the back….
Surely his acquittal does not mean he won’t have to pay for the $9,500 in damage that he caused? I assume he still will be required to pay that sum, but that is unclear from the report..
Outis vehemently denied any wrongdoing, telling jurors that he did not believe he had committed a crime because his actions were intended to deliver a political message to the British Parliament….
Whatever his “intent,” he defaced a statue of Britain’s greatest statesman located in Parliament Square, a statue meant to honor both Churchill’s, and his country’s, indomitable resistance to the Nazis. Surely those graffiti, covering Churchill with pro-Hamas slogans and calling him, in the largest graffito, a “war criminal,” caused great mental distress to many Britons who saw or learned of it. Can’t a price be put on that mental distress? The court seems to think as long as the paint can be washed off, no harm has been done. Many who have viewed the statue bedecked with graffiti would beg to differ. Water-soluble paint can be washed away. Mental distress cannot be so easily effaced. --->READ MORE HERE
A man who spray-painted slogans on to a statue of Sir Winston Churchill has been found not guilty of criminal damage.
Caspar San Giorgi, who is also known as Olax Outis, climbed on to the statue in Parliament Square on 27 February.
He was accused of causing more than £7,000 of damage by using red spray paint to cover the statue with phrases including "Stop the Genocide" and "Free Palestine", describing Churchill as a "Zionist war criminal".
San Giorgi, 39, was acquitted at Southwark Crown Court on Monday afternoon following a trial, a court official said.
During the trial, he told a jury he did not believe he had done anything criminal because he was sending a message to Parliament, and he disputed that the washable paint had actually damaged the statue.
The court previously heard that San Giorgi went to Parliament Square just before 4:00 GMT, carrying cans of spray paint and a ladder to climb the plinth.
He removed his coat to reveal a red boiler suit with the words "I support Palestine Action" on the back, and "set about defacing the statue – spraying… the words Free Palestine and red triangles on the front, and Never Again Is Now on the rear", said prosecutor Peter Ratliff.
San Giorgi had told the jury: "Whether you convict me or not is not too much of a concern for me. --->READ MORE HERE
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