Two men would be put on trial in Sweden for setting the Quran on fire in a series of Quran-burning protests that stoked anger and outrage across the Muslim world and raised fears of jihadist attacks, prosecutors announced last August 28th.
Sweden will prosecute two men, Salwan Momika and Salwan Najem, for burning the Quran and agitating against Muslims.https://t.co/t3EQcysBdY
— Verity (@improvethenews) August 28, 2024
In a statement, the Swedish Prosecution Authority accused the two men of committing “offenses of agitation against an ethnic or national group" on four separate occasions for burning the Islamic holy book outside a mosque and other public places.
"Both men are prosecuted for having on these four occasions made statements and treated the Quran in a manner intended to express contempt for Muslims because of their faith," senior prosecutor Anna Hankkio said in a statement.
Many Muslims see the Quran as the literal word of God, and as such, desecrating it represents a grave offense.
Hankkio said the evidence against the two men, Salwan Momika and Salwan Najem, consisted largely of video recordings.
The Public Prosecutor in Sweden wants to prosecute me for burning the Quran and this was my response to the press today;
I did not know that Sweden would submit to Islam and Muslims and defend the Quran, which was written by bandits and criminals. This is a dangerous sign that… pic.twitter.com/bPnpHVXud4— Salwan Momika (@Salwan_Momika1) August 28, 2024
Momika did not comment on the charges, but Najem spoke to Reuters through his lawyer, Mark Safaryan, denying any wrongdoing.
"The permit granted in connection with the demonstration is covered by my client's intent. His rights are protected by the Swedish Constitution.” Safaryan said.
Momika, who originally came to Sweden from Iraq as a refugee, said he wanted to protest against Islam and ban the Quran during his protests last year, which sparked strong reactions from Muslims all over the world.
Sweden’s immigration agency previously stated it wanted to deport Momika because of the false information he gave during his residency application but later said it would not carry out the order due to the risk of being tortured in his home country.
Sweden has charged me with six counts of incitement against the "Muslims" group by burning the Quran. The police have investigated me and now the same charge is being brought against the Danish Rasmus Paludan! As I told you, there is a legal war being waged by the authorities… pic.twitter.com/jOYMHr3Rsa
— Salwan Momika (@Salwan_Momika1) August 13, 2024
As a result of the Quran-burning protests, Sweden's domestic intelligence service Sapo raised its terrorism threat levels, while Denmark, which also saw a spate of Quran burnings, tightened its laws to ban the practice.
The Swedish government has responded to the Quran burnings with condemnation while trying to uphold the country’s constitutionally protected freedom of speech and assembly laws.
The tensions over the Quran burnings caused a strain in diplomatic relations between Sweden and several Muslim-majority countries. In July last year, angry Iraqi protesters stormed the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad twice, setting it on fire on the second occasion.
However, critics argued that Sweden and Denmark, two of the most liberal countries in the world, should treat Quran burnings as a form of constitutionally protected free speech.
