Two Pro-Palestine Activists Convicted Over Damage to National Gallery Picasso Painting

On 9 October 2024, 25‑year‑old NHS worker Jai Halai and 23‑year‑old politics student Monday‑Malachi Rosenfeld covered the glass protecting Pablo Picasso’s 1901 painting “Motherhood” at London’s National Gallery with a poster of a Gazan mother and child, then poured water‑based red paint on the wooden floor while shouting “Free Palestine”.

A Southwark Crown Court jury found them guilty of criminal damage after more than nine hours of deliberation. Both were released on bail pending a sentencing hearing scheduled for September. Security staff testified that the paint stained marble and required replacement of a mastic joint, but the damage was judged non‑permanent and cleaning costs were minimal (about £272 of an £8,000 billed stunt).

Halai and Rosenfeld are members of Youth Demand, an activist group linked to environmental protests, which said the action was intended to demand a UK arms embargo on Israel.