Man who burned Qurans in Sweden shot dead

An Iraqi Christian refugee who burned Qurans in Sweden during public demonstrations in 2023 has been shot dead.

Salwan Momika's burning of the Qurans led to him being charged with "offences of agitation against an ethnic or national group" last year. Momika said he was attempting to raise awareness of the mistreatment of Christian minorities by Islamists.

His death occurred hours before the court's verdict was due.

Police said today five arrests had been made as part of a murder investigation. The shooting was reported to have taken place in the town of Sodertalje near Stockholm.

Momika was reportedly livestreaming on TikTok when he was shot. Momika's co-defendant posted on X: "I'm next".

Last year, threats from jihadists relating to the Quran burnings led to Sweden raising its terrorism threat level.

The Swedish embassy in Baghdad was stormed following the incident, and the Swedish ambassador was expelled. The Swedish government said it would explore ways to ban the burning of texts in certain circumstances.

Denmark's parliament banned the "inappropriate treatment" of religious texts in 2023 following a series of burnings of Islam's holy book that led to uproar in Muslim countries.

Last year, Labour MP Tahir Ali called on Keir Starmer to "commit to introducing measures to prohibit the desecration of all religious texts and the prophets of the Abrahamic religions".

The National Secular Society urged the Government to protect freedom of expression by rejecting calls to reintroduce blasphemy laws.

NSS: 'Another apparent attempt to impose blasphemy codes through violence'

Stephen Evans, chief executive of the National Secular Society commented: "The killing of Salwan Momika is a heinous act devoid of justification. It is another apparent attempt to impose blasphemy codes through violence, undermining the foundations of an open and democratic society.

"While the desecration of the Quran is undoubtedly offensive to many Muslims, book burnings are non-violent, symbolic acts intended to convey a message. Such expressions, though controversial, are part and parcel of free expression.

"It is crucial for liberal democracies to uphold freedom of expression and protect individuals' rights to speak freely. Any attempt to appease fundamentalists by retreating from these core principles will only validate violent intimidation and encourage further acts of aggression to achieve political ends in the future."