Salwan Momika, Iraqi Man Who Burned Quran In 2023, Shot Dead In Sweden

Salwan Momika and one other Salwan Najem were charged in August with "agitation against an ethnic group" on four occasions in the summer of 2023.

By : ABP News Bureau | Updated at : 30 Jan 2025 04:09 PM (IST)

Salwan Momika was reportedly shot dead in his apartment in Sweden.
Source : X@Inevitablewest

Salwan Momika, the 38-year-old Iraqi man, who sparked violent protests after burning the Quran has reportedly been shot dead in Sweden.

He is said to have been killed on Wednesday evening in an apartment in Hovsjo in Södertälje, Stockholm, BBC reported citing local media reports.

In a statement, Stockholm police said that five people had been arrested after a man in his 40s was shot dead overnight.

In 2023, Momika sparked massive unrest after he set fire to a copy of Islam's holy book outside Stockholm Central Mosque. This reportedly sparked riots in several Muslim nations as people were outraged by his actions. 

Momika and one other Salwan Najem were charged in August with "agitation against an ethnic group" on four occasions in the summer of 2023. The duo were charged for desecrating the Quran, including burning it, and making derogatory remarks about Muslims, once outside a mosque in Stockholm, AFP reported. 

The verdict for this was due to be delivered on Thursday, but was postponed after it was "confirmed that one of the defendants had died", the Stockholm District Court said.

He had also carried out a series of anti-Islam protests, arguing that his agitation was against the religion and not Muslims. He said he wanted to protect Sweden from the messages in the Quran. He was allowed to protest by the Swedish government due to freedom of speech laws, but was still charged.

After he burnt the holy book during the protests, the Swedish government later pledged to explore legal means of abolishing demonstrations which involve burning texts, condemning the desecrations.

Due to Momika's protests in Sweden, the relations between Sweden and the Middle East countries were hit. Unrest broke out twice at the Swedish embassy in Baghdad, with Iraqi protesters firing within the compounds on the second occasion. The Swedish ambassador was also expelled from the city amid a diplomatic row.

In 2023, the Swedish Migration Agency had decided to expel Monika from the country, but due to death threats against him in his country, the expulsoon was not carried out. He was then granted a new temporary residence permit which was valid until April 2024.

Published at : 30 Jan 2025 04:07 PM (IST)
Tags :
Quran Sweden Stockholm

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