Climate activists vandalize Messi's house in Ibiza

Madrid (AFP) – Climate activists on Tuesday spray-painted a mansion on the Spanish holiday island of Ibiza belonging to Argentinian football star Lionel Messi, sparking the ire of his country's President Javier Milei.

Campaigners from the group Futuro Vegetal released a video showing two members standing in front of the house near the cove of Cala Tarida on Ibiza's western coast holding a banner that read: "Help the Planet -- Eat the Rich -- Abolish the Police."

The activists then sprayed the white facade of the building with red and black paint.

In a statement, the group said they wanted to show "the responsibility of the rich for the climate crisis" by targeting the mansion which they said was an "illegal construction".

Futuro Vegetal cited a 2023 Oxfam report that found that the richest one percent of the world's population generated the same amount of carbon emissions in 2019 as the poorest two thirds of humanity.

This disparity came about despite the fact that the most vulnerable communities are the ones suffering the "worst consequences" of this crisis, they said.

Milei reacted furiously on X, formerly Twitter, lambasting "communists who want to murder the rich and abolish the police to end climate change".

"I stand with Messi's family over this cowardly and crazy incident," he added, asking Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's government to guarantee the security of Argentinians living in the country.

Glue on Goya

Messi, who currently plays for Inter Miami in the United States, reportedly bought the property on the Mediterranean island -- which includes a spa with a sauna and a cinema room -- in 2022 from a Swiss businessman for around 11 million euros ($12 million).

But the mansion lacked a certificate of occupancy, a document issued by a local government agency certifying it is in a liveable condition, due to the construction of several rooms in the property without a licence, according to Spanish media reports.

Futuro Vegetal, which is linked to similar groups internationally, has staged dozens of similar protests, including one in 2022 where they glued their hands to frames of paintings by Spanish master Francisco de Goya at Madrid's Prado museum.

Last year activists from the group spray-painted a superyacht moored in Ibiza with red and black paint that reportedly belonged to Nancy Walton Laurie, the billionaire heiress of US retail giant Walmart.

Spanish police in January said they had arrested 22 members of Futuro Vegetal, including the two who staged the protest at the Prado as well as the group's top three leaders.