Banksy’s new artwork, which features the red “STOP” sign with three military drone, was seen taken in broad daylight on Friday, an hour after the artist unveiled it on Commercial Way, Packham, south-east London.
The art piece was interrupted by many to be a political statement calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, which has been under attack by Israeli troops for more than 77 days. The Palestinian death toll from the ongoing Israeli atrocities on the Strip since October 7 has risen to 20,258, with 53,688 injuries.
The Banksy sign was seen taken by two men in red and black jackets, who removed it with bolt cutters, according to witnesses who took pictures and recorded videos of the incident.
Banksy new artwork on Commercial Way, Peckham, south-east London
An eyewitness who preferred to only be known as Alex told the Press Association “I went there thinking that people want that, I wanted to see it before something happened to it,”
According to him, the man who took the piece climbed up on a bike next to the red “STOP “sign and began hitting it with his hands.
A man in a red jacket seen hitting the artwork with his hand
The man then left and returned with the bolt cutters to continue remove the sign, while the other man stabilised the lime rental bike he stood on. After the man removed the sign, he took it and ran away.
“We said, ‘What are you doing?’ but no one really knew what to do, we sort of just watched it happen,” Alex added. “We were all a bit bemused; there was some honking of car horns.”
The incident was reported to the police, and a man who is believed to be in connection with the theft was arrested, according to the Metropolitan Police.
