A London court ordered the removal of a Banksy mural Tuesday from the Royal Courts of Justice after unrest tied to pro-Palestinian demonstrations swept the city.
The piece, painted days after more than 900 people were arrested at a Saturday protest against a ban on a pro-Palestinian group, shows a judge in wig and robes striking down a bloodied protester with a gavel. Banksy’s depiction does not reference a specific rally, according to The Washington Post. (RELATED: Ava DuVernay Among 1300 Artists Boycotting ‘Israeli Film Institutions’)
Banksy, who keeps his identity secret, confirmed the mural’s authenticity by posting a photo of it to Instagram.
Crowds gathered around the Royal Courts after the protest, many backing Palestine Action — a group accused of violent attacks and banned in July under Britain’s terrorism laws, the Post reported.
HM Courts and Tribunals Service said the 143-year-old Royal Courts of Justice is a protected landmark and must be kept in its original form, calling preservation of the building’s character a legal obligation.
An artwork by street artist Banksy, depicting a judge using a gavel to beat a protester using a placard as protection, is pictured on a exterior wall of the The Royal Courts of Justice, Britain’s High Court, in London on September 9, 2025. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP)
Security officers set up metal barriers around the mural Monday, but crowds pressed in to snap photos before its removal.
In Parliament, Security Minister Dan Jarvis said Britons are free to protest government policies, including the war in Gaza, but drew a line at Palestine Action’s tactics. The group, he said, has carried out “an escalating campaign involving intimidation and sustained criminal damage, including to Britain’s national security infrastructure,” according to the Post.
People take a photograph of an artwork by street artist Banksy, depicting a judge using a gavel to beat a protester using a placard as protection, painted on a exterior wall of the The Royal Courts of Justice, Britain’s High Court, in London on September 9, 2025. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS / AFP via Getty Images)
“These are not the actions of a legitimate protest group,” Jarvis said.
Defend Our Juries, which organized the Saturday protest, countered that Banksy’s mural captured “the state brutality unleashed on [protesters] following the proscription of Palestine Action,” the outlet reported.
Officials have not said when the mural will be taken down.