Stockholm: Salwan Momika, an Iraqi man notorious for burning the Quran in Sweden, has reportedly been killed. According to Swedish state media, the 38-year-old died from gunshot wounds after being found at his home in Hovsjo, Sodertalje, late Wednesday night. His death came as a Stockholm district court postponed the verdict in a case where he had been a defendant.
Momika gained international attention in 2023 for several Quran burnings and acts of desecration, leading to widespread outrage in Muslim-majority countries and sparking riots. His protests, he claimed, were aimed at criticizing Islam as a religion, not targeting Muslims themselves, and were intended to protect Swedish society from what he perceived as harmful messages in the Quran.
Charges and deportation
Despite public support from Swedish police who allowed his protests on grounds of freedom of speech, he was still charged with incitement to racial hatred. His court hearing on Thursday had been expected to result in a verdict. In 2023, the Swedish Migration Agency decided to expel Momika, but due to security concerns arising from threats against him in Iraq, the deportation was delayed. He was instead granted a temporary residence permit valid until April 2024.
Born in the Al-Hamdaniya district of northern Iraq’s Nineveh province, Momika was raised as an Assyrian Catholic. During the Iraq war between 2006-2008, he joined the Assyrian Patriotic Party and later became part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) after ISIS captured Mosul. He was involved in resisting ISIS and was seen in videos swearing loyalty to the Imam Ali Brigades, a Shiite military faction.
Momika’s journey to Sweden
In 2017, Momika fled to Germany, where he renounced Christianity and declared himself an atheist. He sought asylum in Sweden in 2018 and was granted a temporary residence permit, but his application for permanent residency was rejected due to inconsistencies in his asylum claim. He later expressed interest in running for Sweden’s parliament as a candidate for the Sweden Democrats.
