Iraqi Shot Dead in Sweden Ahead of Verdict over Quran Burning

Police carry out operations in Sodertalje, south of Stockholm, on January 30, 2025, following the shooting of Quran burner Salwan Momika in an apartment. TT News Agency/Jonas Ekstromer via REUTERS
Police carry out operations in Sodertalje, south of Stockholm, on January 30, 2025, following the shooting of Quran burner Salwan Momika in an apartment. TT News Agency/Jonas Ekstromer via REUTERS
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Iraqi Shot Dead in Sweden Ahead of Verdict over Quran Burning

Police carry out operations in Sodertalje, south of Stockholm, on January 30, 2025, following the shooting of Quran burner Salwan Momika in an apartment. TT News Agency/Jonas Ekstromer via REUTERS
Police carry out operations in Sodertalje, south of Stockholm, on January 30, 2025, following the shooting of Quran burner Salwan Momika in an apartment. TT News Agency/Jonas Ekstromer via REUTERS

An Iraqi refugee was shot dead in Sweden late on Wednesday, just hours before he was due to receive a court verdict following a trial over burning the Quran, a court document showed on Thursday.

Salwan Momika, 38, was shot in a house in the town of Sodertalje near Stockholm, public broadcaster SVT reported, citing unnamed police sources.
Momika had burned copies of the Quran in public demonstrations in 2023 against Islam.

A Stockholm court had been due to sentence Momika and another man on Thursday in a criminal trial over "offences of agitation against an ethnic or national group," but said the announcement of the verdict had been postponed, Reuters reported.

The other defendant in the same court case posted a message on X on Thursday, saying: "I'm next.”

Police confirmed that a man was shot dead in Sodertalje around 2200 GMT on Wednesday but did not comment further.

"We are following the development of events closely to see what impact this may have on Swedish security," a Security Service spokesperson told Reuters, adding that it was a police matter and they were leading the investigation.

Swedish media reported that Momika was streaming live on TikTok at the time he was shot. A video seen by Reuters showed police picking up a phone and ending a livestream that appeared to be from Momika's TikTok account.

Sweden in 2023 raised its terrorism alert to the second-highest level and warned of threats against Swedes at home and abroad after the Quran burnings, many of them by Momika, outraged Muslims.

While the Swedish government condemned the wave of Quran burnings in 2023, it was initially regarded as a protected form of free speech.



Macron’s Message to Trump: ‘You Can’t Be Weak in the Face of Putin’ 

French President Emmanuel Macron waits for the arrival of guests for a second meeting on Ukraine and European security at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 19, 2025. (Reuters)
French President Emmanuel Macron waits for the arrival of guests for a second meeting on Ukraine and European security at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 19, 2025. (Reuters)
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Macron’s Message to Trump: ‘You Can’t Be Weak in the Face of Putin’ 

French President Emmanuel Macron waits for the arrival of guests for a second meeting on Ukraine and European security at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 19, 2025. (Reuters)
French President Emmanuel Macron waits for the arrival of guests for a second meeting on Ukraine and European security at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, February 19, 2025. (Reuters)

French President Emmanuel Macron said he intends to tell Donald Trump that it's in the joint interest of Americans and Europeans not to “be weak” in the face of Russia's Vladimir Putin amid US-led negotiations to end the almost three-year war in Ukraine.

Macron is to travel to Washington to meet with Trump on Monday, the White House said.

In a one-hour question and answer session on his social media Thursday, Macron said he'll tell Trump: “You can’t be weak in the face of President Putin. It’s not you, it’s not your trademark, it’s not in your interest. How can you then be credible in the face of China if you’re weak in the face of Putin?”

Trump's recent statements that echo Putin's narrative and plans to have direct negotiations with Moscow have left European allies and Ukrainian officials worried. But Macron suggested Trump's strategy to create “uncertainty” in talks with Russia could actually make Western allies stronger in these talks.

Putin “doesn’t know what he (Trump) is going to do, he thinks (Trump) is capable of anything,” Macron said. “This uncertainty is good for us and for Ukraine.”

Macron added he would seek to persuade Trump that US interests and Europeans’ interests are the same, telling him: “If you let Russia take over Ukraine, it would be unstoppable.”

That means any peace deal must be negotiated with Ukrainians and Europeans around the table, Macron reaffirmed.

"We want peace, but we don’t want a ceasefire that means Ukraine surrendering, because that’s dangerous. And we know that would lead to Russia going further. We’ve already experienced it," he said.

Macron also appeared ready to answer Trump's call to boost defense spending. “Us, Europeans, we must increase our war effort,” he said.

Asked about whether he's considering sending French troops to Ukraine, he said he would not send soldiers to fight in Ukraine but rather a security force meant to bring “guarantees” once a peace deal is achieved.

“We don't rule out, within a framework planned with our allies, the possibility of having forces which, once peace has been negotiated, could contribute to guaranteeing Ukraine’s security,” he said.