World War II Memorial in Washington Vandalized With Bubbles and Graffiti

The World War II Memorial on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., was vandalized Thursday with soap bubbles introduced into a fountain and red paint graffiti reading "Clean hands dirty $" Applied to the memorial.

The Interior Department issued a statement saying: "Our U.S. Park Police are on the scene and the investigation is ongoing. The public should know we will find the person responsible for this disgusting act."

The Friends of the National World War II Memorial, a nonprofit that helps maintain the site, stated: "There are many places in our country for expression, debate, and disagreement. A national memorial honoring those who served and those who never returned home should never be used as a canvas for vandalism."

The Veterans of Foreign Wars characterized the vandalism as "an act of profound disrespect, a slap in the face to the veterans who served and sacrificed and to the families who carried that burden at home."

The memorial sits east of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool on the Mall. Earlier this year, repair work at the pool resulted in peeling blue sealant and green algae, with President Donald Trump attributing the issues to vandalism without providing supporting evidence.