GW maintenance workers painted over pro-Palestinian murals at the GroW Garden on Monday.

Two facilities workers painted over the three murals, which read “Ceasefire Now,” “Fund gardens not genocide” and “free Palestine” with white paint, then with blue paint to match the wall bordering the GroW Garden on Monday afternoon. A statement released Thursday on the GroW Garden Instagram stated garden members painted the murals Sunday.

“Our messages are always peaceful and pursuant of justice, and standing by silently contributes to a culture of violence that we vehemently oppose on our campus and in our world,” the statement reads.

University spokesperson Julia Metjian said the group did not go through the proper approval protocol before painting the designs, so GW Facilities removed them.

“GW is committed to academic freedom, free inquiry, and free expression,” Metjian said in an email. “In general, the university does not censor speech based solely on content and the actions taken with respect to the GroW garden were not based on the content of the messages.”

Metjian declined to state whether officials received complaints over the murals.

A facilities worker said officials filed a report with the GW Police Department; the department’s crime log states the incident occurred at approximately 11 a.m. on Sunday and that the case remains open.

Fiona Riley and Sarah Gross contributed reporting.