Serial Koran burner ‘shot dead in his flat during TikTok livestream’
A Christian Iraqi refugee who was on trial for burning the Koran has been shot dead during a live stream.
Salwan Momika, 38, was killed at a property in Sodertalje near Stockholm, public broadcaster SVT reported.
In 2023 he had carried out a number of public demonstration against Islam, including burning copies of the holy book.
Five people have been arrested, but it is not known if the shooter is among them.
Salwan was due to be sentenced alongside another man over ‘offences of agitation against an ethnic or national group’.
The other defendant was giving interviews on Thursday and posted a message on X, saying: ‘I’m next.’
Swedish media reported Salwan was live streaming on TikTok at the time he was shot.
Footage shows police picking up a phone and ending a livestream that appeared to be from Salwan’s TikTok account.
While the Swedish government condemned the wave of Koran burnings in 2023, it was initially regarded as a protected form of free speech.
The Security Service said that police were leading the investigation but ‘we are following the development of events closely to see what impact this may have on Swedish security’.
Sweden in 2023 raised its terrorism alert to the second-highest level and warned of threats against Swedes at home and abroad after the Koran burnings, many of them by Salwan, outraged Muslims and triggered threats from jihadists.
Sweden’s migration agency in 2023 wanted to deport Salwan for giving false information on his residency application, but couldn’t as he risked torture and inhumane treatment in Iraq.
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