Man who publicly burned Quran murdered in Sweden

The man who gained worldwide attention for publicly burning the Quran has been murdered in Sweden.

Salwan Momika was shot dead late Wednesday evening in Södertälje, a town 36 km southwest of Stockholm.

According to local outlet SVT, the assassination took place at his home in the neighbourhood of Hovsjö, shortly before 11 p.m. When authorities arrived on scene a short time later, they found Momika suffering from gunshot wounds. He was rushed to hospital, but succumbed to his injuries.

Five people were arrested in connection with the killing, though no charges have been filed as of yet. An investigation has been launched with the assistance of the Swedish Security Service, with Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson noting there was "obviously a risk that there were links to foreign powers."

Momika first came to Sweden as a refugee from Iraq in 2018, and was subsequently granted a three-year residence permit. In 2023, he kicked off his series of Quran-burning protests, publicly desecrating the book on numerous occassions.

His actions were met with support within Sweden, but many in the Muslim community were not very happy. In Islamic nations around the world, he was called out, and in Baghdad, some even went so far as storming the Swedish embassy and expelling an ambassador from the nordic nation.

Momika was eventually charged with "agitation against an ethnic group" in relation to the Quran burnings, and had been due to be sentenced on Thursday. In the wake of his death, the charges were dropped.

This is far from the first time someone has been hurt or murdered for non-violent acts against Islam in Europe. In 2015, for example, staff at the Paris-based satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo were killed by terrorists after publishing a cartoon depicting the prophet Mohammad.