The British Museum was closed today (March 24) after activists joined forces to block entry to the historic building. Climate activists and pro-Palestine protesters, united under a new alliance called Energy Embargo for Palestine, gathered outside the major tourist attraction chanting ‘Shut down BP’ this afternoon.
Video footage, shared on social media, shows dozens of demonstrators outside the artefact-filled Greek Revival-style building, on Russell Street, from around 2.15pm. After advice from the Met Police, museum management closed both entrances, but anyone who was in before 3pm was allowed to stay until they wanted to leave, a museum source told MyLondon.
Protestors stood at the museum’s main entrance and held up a banner which read ‘Sponsored by BP = sponsored by colonial genocide’. Palestine flags were also waved as demonstrators called out ‘shut down BP’ and ‘if you partner with BP, we’ll shut you down’.
The group initially planned to hold a sit-in at the main courtyard of the museum, according to posts on the encrypted app Signal, but settled for a demonstration at the gates after failing to make it to the lobby.
The British Museum has been targeted due to its sponsorship with British Petroleum (BP.) A briefing note says: “We are returning to the British Museum to take action against their new 10-year contract with mega-conglomerate British Petroleum, which was granted licenses for gas exploration off the coast of Gaza by the Zionist entity on October 30th.”
The note also urged those taking part to provide no comment and no personal details to the police, and not to accept a duty solicitor if arrested, the Mirror reports.
This isn’t the first time the British Museum has been targeted by the group, who protested and called for museum executives to ‘drop BP now’ on February 11 this year.
A British Museum spokesperson said: “Now the Museum has closed for the day we wish to express our apologies to all those whose visits were disrupted. We will be offering to move their tickets to another day or a refund.”
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