Two climbers scale Empire State Building antenna, arrested
On Wednesday, July 1 2026, two people climbed the Empire State Building antenna in New York City, raised a peace flag and banner, and were arrested after the climb.
On Wednesday, July 1 2026, two people climbed the Empire State Building antenna in New York City and were arrested after the climb. The climbers, described as a Russian couple, wore masks and black clothing and climbed without safety gear. They raised a peace flag and unfurled a banner that read “When the power of love beats the love of power, the world knows peace.” (Guardian). They remained at the top for at least ten minutes (BBC) and one climber proposed to the other at the summit.
Accounts differ on the climbers’ identities. India reported the names Ivan Kuznetsov and Angelina Nikolau, while other outlets reported the names Angela Nikolau and Vanya Beerkus. Times of India identified the climbers as Ivan Kuznetsov and Angelina Nikolau, and Daily Mail identified them as Angela Nikolau and Vanya Beerkus.
This account was written only from facts that survived Augur's
corroboration pass — 9 corroborated across opposed news blocs,
1 contested (attributed to both sides), 4
single-source (attributed). Nothing was added; no significance was inferred.
Model Qwen3-Next-80B-A3B-Instruct.
See the evidence & the verbatim quotes →