Four charges of “agitation against a national or ethnic group” are brought against the individual by the court.
A man was found guilty by a Stockholm court of inciting ethnic hatred during four Quran burnings in 2023 that caused indignation around the world, particularly in Muslim nations.
Days after the man’s 38-year-old co-defendant, Salwan Momika, was shot and killed late Wednesday at an apartment southwest of Stockholm, the verdict was handed out on Monday.
The verdict against Momika and 50-year-old Salwan Najem was supposed to be released the next day by the Stockholm district court, but it was postponed until Monday due to Momika’s murder.
Judge Goran Lundahl stated in a statement that “there is a wide scope within the framework of freedom of expression to be critical of a religion in a factual and objective debate.”
“At the same time, expressing one’s opinion about religion does not give one a free pass to do or say anything and everything without risking offending the group that holds that belief,” he stated.
Najem, 50, was convicted on four counts of “agitation against a national or ethnic group” by the court.
“Disdain for the Muslim community”
He received a suspended sentence, which in Sweden entails that the court would review his punishment if he committed another crime during the two-year probationary period.
In addition, a fine of 4,000 kronor ($358) was imposed upon him.
Najem has challenged the decision.
On two separate occasions outside a mosque in Stockholm, the two males were charged with making disparaging remarks about Muslims and desecrating the Quran, including by burning copies of it.
Although the Swedish government frequently denounced the desecrations at the time, it said that the constitution of the nation protected the right to free speech.
“The acts and conduct well went beyond what is considered a factual debate and criticism, even if the intention was to criticize Islam. The protests consistently showed disdain for the Muslim group,” the judge stated.
