New York’s suburban Nassau County has passed a bill to ban the wearing of masks to hide the identity of pro-Palestinian protesters against US support for Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, Reuters reports.

The ban on masks would cover any sort of public protest, but lawmakers in the Republican-controlled county say the bill aims to prevent protesters who engage in alleged violence and antisemitism from hiding their identity and avoiding accountability. Civil rights advocates saw the step as an infringement on free speech rights.

The bill was approved late on Monday, with all 12 Republicans in the county legislature voting in its favour while the seven Democrats abstained.

The bill makes wearing a facial covering to hide identity in public a misdemeanour that can be punished with up to one year in prison and a $1,000 penalty. It makes exemptions for health or medical reasons as well as for “religious and cultural purposes.”

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