It’s been over two months since Vladimir Putin ordered the Russian army to invade the sovereign state of Ukraine, resulting in a long slog of a war that has killed thousands and displaced millions. As the conflict rages on, many of the Ukrainian refugees are taking shelter elsewhere, including in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland happens to be where HBO shot a lot of its fantasy mega-hit Game of Thrones. Now, Irish Central reports that pro-Russian graffiti has appeared on the Ballymoney road in County Antrim under a long line of trees known as the Dark Hedges, planted over 200 years ago. Fans may remember this road from when Arya and Gendry were fleeing King’s Landing way back in the season 2 premiere.
The graffiti reads “glory to Russia.” There’s also the letter “Z,” which has been painted on invading Russian tanks. There’s a split over exactly what that means (‘Z’ isn’t part of the Russian Cyrillic alphabet), but a popular take is that it stands for “Za pobedy,” which means “for victory.”
Pro-Russian graffiti appears under the Dark Hedges in Northern Ireland
There’s also no solid word on why someone might do this, but it’s possible it was done in reaction to more Ukrainian refugees arriving in the area. That’s the tack Unionist politician Mervyn Storey seems to be taking. “This is a wanton act of vandalism at one of Northern Ireland’s most iconic location,” Storey said. “It is completely at odds with the warm welcome our local community provide to tourists from all over the world who come to see what the Dark Hedges and the North Coast have to offer.”
Storey says he will be “working closely with local authorities and the PSNI to ensure this graffiti is removed immediately and those responsible held to account.”
As for who did it, a police spokesperson said only that, “Enquiries are ongoing.”
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