A man attempted to burn the Quran in front of the Turkish embassy in London, UK. On Thursday afternoon, local time, as he set fire to the Quran, another person from the street ran towards him.
According to reports from UK media citing eyewitnesses, a man ignited a book in front of the embassy, possibly offending religious sentiments. At that moment, an unidentified person rushed at him with a knife.
A video of the incident has gone viral on the X platform. The footage shows a hooded individual standing outside the security barrier of the Turkish embassy, setting fire to a book that was burning in his hand. Suddenly, another man charged at him with a raised knife. The attacker ran towards him, causing the Quran burner to flee and fall. The knife-wielding man then began kicking him repeatedly.
Police quickly arrived at the scene, arrested the attacker, and took the injured man to a local hospital. Aside from a minor injury to one of his fingers, he sustained no serious harm. Authorities are investigating the attacker’s identity and motives.
The Turkish embassy strongly condemned the incident, stating, “No provocative act intended to offend religious sentiments can justify violence. We urge all parties to remain peaceful and restrained.”
London Metropolitan Police urged the public to stay calm, stating, “We are conducting a full investigation into this incident and have deployed additional officers to ensure the city’s safety.”
An X account posted a live account of the event. A previous post had warned about the Quran burning, stating, “45 minutes left until the event,” accompanied by a book and fire emoji. Some users responded with warnings such as, “No need to do this,” while others posted fire emojis or cautioned, “Be careful, guys.”
Some users on X claimed that the man was burning the Quran in protest against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, alleging that Turkey was becoming a “stronghold for radical Islamists.”
Later, the man posted, “I was attacked with a knife while burning the Quran. Then an ambulance and police arrived.”
Earlier, he had announced his plan to travel to London and burn the Quran in honor of Salwan Momika. In the same post, he shared videos of Momika burning the Quran and flushing its pages down the toilet.
In 2023, Salwan Momika burned a Quran outside Stockholm’s central mosque. He was shot dead in January 2024.
LND/SAKIB
