Topless activists pour mud on themselves in Rome amid Europe-wide climate protests

Topless environmental activists from the 'Last Generation' group covered themselves in mud in front of the Italian Senate in Rome on Tuesday to protest fossil fuels and the consequences of climate change.

Italy has been hit by extreme rainfall recently that flooded the northeastern region of Emilia Romagna killing at least 14 people. Protesters consider it a "disaster foretold".

Last Generation activists have been protesting for years against global warming with roadblocks, by gluing themselves to painting masterpieces and by throwing washable paint on famous monuments.

Protesters in London also tried to storm the stage and cause disruption at the annual shareholder meeting of oil giant Shell, with many being dragged away by security guards.

Shell Chairperson Andrew Mackenzie was unable to start the meeting for more than an hour as dozens of protesters stood up, chanting and singing “Shut down Shell" and “Go to hell, Shell.”

Several attempted to run onto the stage, but they were stopped by security guards who carried them out of the room at London's ExCel conference centre.

The activists, which included members of Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion, say Shell was making record profits at the cost of the environment. 

"Shell is continuing to drill new oil and gas fields here in the UK and around the world in some of the most biodiverse regions in the Philippines and in the Niger Delta," says Carina Manitius, a protestor from Fossil Free London.

"Despite their own internal scenario saying that continuing new oil and gas expansion will push us off a 1.5-degree cliff, which will just push us more towards extinction and climate catastrophe."

In February, Shell said its annual profits for 2022 were a record €36 billion.

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