The World War II Memorial on Washington’s National Mall was vandalised on Thursday with pink spray paint, while a fountain at the site was found overflowing with bubbles. The incident matters because it affected a prominent memorial honouring those who served in the Second World War and is part of a wider pattern of monuments being targeted in the US capital.

A Minnesota Army veteran visiting the memorial said she was offended by the damage, having travelled there to pay respects to earlier generations of service members. The report did not state who was responsible, the extent of the damage, or whether arrests had been made.