A topless woman stormed the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival on Friday to protest against sexual violence in Ukraine, CNN reports.
The woman, whose name is not known, had blue and yellow paint to represent the Ukrainian flag - as well as the words "stop raping us" - across her torso. She also wore a pair of white underwear covered in red paint which resembled blood.
She emerged from behind photographers at the prestigious festival, swiftly removing her dress in order to make a very public stand against the alleged rapes of Ukrainian women by Russians. Once her dress was off, she made her way onto the red carpet and began shouting at the cameras.
She was quickly restrained by security guards at the event and wrapped in a jacket before being led away from the festival.
French feminist group, SCUM, who describe themselves as "radical feminist activists and universalist blasphemers," confirmed on Instagram that a member of their organization attended the festival to "denounce the sexual torture suffered by Ukrainian women in the war."
The post read: "She used the codes of FEMEN, as well as the aesthetics of the protest against the crimes committed by Russian soldiers lead in April by Estonian women in front of the Russian embassy."
The group went on to explain: "Since Putin's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, Russian and European men have taken advantage of the war to sexually abuse Ukrainian women.
"Pimps are guarding the borders of Germany with the purpose of forcing war refugees into their network, while others hide behind volunteerism to lure these women into their grip and then sell them.
"Rape is used as a war weapon by Russian soldiers, as reported by Inna Shevchenko among others. Women are the first victims of the war, conducted by and for men."
It added: "We remind that war pimping and war rape, which are part of the russian will to destroy the Ukrainian people, are crimes against humanity. The rape of women must not be a way for soldiers to defile their enemy.
"We remind that the inaction of Europe and the rest of the world in the face of the pimps' and Russian soldiers' violence is a form of complicity.
"We remind that in war as in peace, no woman is for sale, no woman is for rape, no man has the right to colonize and commercialize our bodies."
SCUM concluded its post: "STOP RAPING US."
There have been numerous reports of sexual assault in Ukraine since it was invaded by Russia earlier this year.
On Thursday, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense said it had received more than 60 reports of rape in two days - and went on to add that young children were also being targeted.
