Topless women protesting the Ukraine war are detained for vandalizing sculpture near UN building

GENEVA (AP) — At least three feminist activists were detained on Friday after vandalizing a monument outside the United Nations complex in Geneva to protest Russia's war against Ukraine and what they see as the U.N.'s failure to stop the conflict.

Two topless women with the group FEMEN, which is known for its provocative protests, used a chainsaw to cut into the wooden sculpture known as the “Broken Chair.”

One woman with white flowers in her hair left several large gashes in a leg of the sculpture, a 12-meter (40-foot) tall giant chair with a broken leg. The artwork symbolizes the dismemberment caused by land mines and is a call to ban the devastating weapons, which have also been used in the war in Ukraine.

The two women wore bands in the blue and yellow colors of the Ukrainian flag on their legs. They had words including “stop mines” and “F—- russia” painted on their bare chests and backs in near-freezing temperatures, and shouted expletives repeatedly against the United Nations and Russia.

They declined to speak to reporters afterward.

At least three women — including a colleague of the two demonstrators — were later detained by police officers in three cars.

“The U.N. was created to ensure peace, but its failure to stop the aggressor only adds to the tragedy of symbols such as the Broken Chair, a reminder of the human suffering caused by anti-personnel mines," a statement from the group read.

The group called for the expulsion of Russia from the United Nations over its war in Ukraine, which involved a full-scale invasion in Feb. 2022.

"Ukraine has become a victim of betrayal and military aggression, and the world cannot cover itself with monuments, remaining indifferent while we are being destroyed,” it said.

Activists of the feminist group Femen protest to support Ukraine and to demand Russia's expulsion from the UN, under the 'Broken Chair' Monument on Place des Nations in front of the European headquarters of the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

Activists of the feminist group Femen protest to support Ukraine and to demand Russia's expulsion from the UN, under the 'Broken Chair' Monument on Place des Nations in front of the European headquarters of the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

Activists of the feminist group Femen protest to support Ukraine and to demand Russia's expulsion from the UN, under the 'Broken Chair' Monument on Place des Nations in front of the European headquarters of the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

EDS NOTE: NUDITY - Activists of the feminist group Femen protest to support Ukraine and to demand Russia's expulsion from the UN, under the 'Broken Chair' Monument on Place des Nations in front of the European headquarters of the United Nations (UN) in Geneva, Switzerland, Friday, Dec. 13, 2024. (Salvatore Di Nolfi/Keystone via AP)

Halley's comet swings near Earth every 75 years. But debris left by the comet leads to two major meteor showers every year including the Eta Aquarids.

When this meteor shower lights up the night sky, “you'll know that Earth is crossing the path of the most famous comet,” said Shauna Edson of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum.

The Eta Aquarids are “pretty fast meteors” said NASA's Bill Cooke.

During Tuesday morning’s peak, expect to see 10 to 15 meteors per hour in ideal viewing conditions, said Cooke.

However, the moon will be nearly two-thirds full, which will likely reduce visibility.

Viewing lasts until May 28. Here’s what to know about the Eta Aquarids and other meteor showers.

As the Earth orbits the sun, several times a year it passes through debris left by passing comets and sometimes asteroids. The source of the Eta Aquarids is debris from Halley's comet.

When these fast-moving space rocks enter Earth’s atmosphere, the debris encounters new resistance from the air and becomes very hot, eventually burning up.

Sometimes the surrounding air glows briefly, leaving behind a fiery tail — the end of a “shooting star.”

You don’t need special equipment to see the various meteor showers that flash across annually, just a spot away from city lights.

The best time to watch a meteor shower is in the early predawn hours when the moon is low in the sky.

Competing sources of light — such as a bright moon or artificial glow — are the main obstacles to a clear view of meteors. Cloudless nights when the moon wanes smallest are optimal viewing opportunities.

And keep looking up, not down. Your eyes will be better adapted to spot shooting stars if you aren’t checking your phone.

The next major meteor shower, the Southern Delta Aquarids, peaks in late July.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

FILE - A Perseid meteor streaks across the sky during the Perseid meteor shower in Vinton, California, Aug. 11, 2009. (AP Photo/Kevin Clifford, File)

FILE - A meteor streaks through the sky over Joshua trees and rocks at Joshua Tree National Park in Southern California's Mojave Desert in this 30-minute time exposure ending at 1:15 a.m. PST, Nov. 17, 1998. Stars moving through the sky as the Earth rotates are seen as a series of short lines across the frame. (AP Photo/Reed Saxon, File)

FILE - This photo provided by NASA shows an Eta Aquarid meteor streaking over northern Georgia on April 29, 2012. (B. Cooke/Marshall Space Flight Center/NASA via AP, File)