New Banksy Artwork Challenges UK's Protest Crackdown

London: British street artist Banksy on Monday took aim at the UK's crackdown on protesters with a new work outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, adding fuel to a free-speech row roiling the country.

The artist posted an image of the work, which features a judge wielding a gavel over a protester on the ground holding a blood-splattered placard, on his Instagram page.

The work has since been covered by black plastic sheets and two metal barriers.

It appeared after 890 people were arrested at a demonstration against a ban on the activist group Palestine Action in London on Saturday.

The artwork "powerfully depicts the brutality unleashed" by the government's ban, said a spokesperson from the Defend Our Juries group that organised the protest.

"Since the dystopian ban came into force, over 1,600 people have been arrested under the Terrorism Act for holding cardboard signs with seven words 'I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action'," the spokesperson added.

"When the law is used as a tool to crush civil liberties, it does not extinguish dissent -- it strengthens it."

Free speech has become a hot topic in the UK, with people from across the political spectrum complaining that the law is too heavy-handed.

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