US EditionUK man charged for burning Quran amid 'blasphemy law' accusations
- In February 2025, Hamit Coskun, a 50-year-old resident of Derby, was detained after setting fire to a copy of the Quran near the Turkish diplomatic mission in London.
- The Crown Prosecution Service first accused Coskun of offences related to provoking hostility toward the Islamic faith, but later acknowledged that this charge was improperly formulated and replaced it with one that better represented the nature of the alleged misconduct.
- Coskun said he protested against Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Islamist-leaning policies, and the CPS amended the charge to disorderly behaviour motivated by hostility toward Muslims.
- The CPS stated they charged Coskun as his acts caused harassment and distress motivated by religious hostility, while critics warned the original charge risked reintroducing blasphemy laws.
- The altered charge avoids accusations against a religious institution, but the case raises concerns about balancing free speech and protecting religious tolerance in UK law.
14 Articles
14 Articles
Robert Jenrick: We risk a two-tier blasphemy law, fit for Starmer’s two-tier Britain
Robert Jenrick is Shadow Justice Secretary, a former Home Office, Health and Housing Minister and is the MP for Newark. In February, a man was arrested after footage emerged of him burning a Quran outside the Turkish Consulate in London. He said that he was protesting against the policies of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the President of Turkey, which he feared were turning Turkey into a “base for radical Islamists.” He was arrested, and charged by the …
UK man charged for burning Quran amid ’blasphemy law’ criticism
Charges against a man who burned a Quran outside the Turkish consulate in London have been altered amid a right-wing backlash.Hamit Coskun, 50, set fire to the Quran outside the Turkish embassy, claiming this was in solidarity with Iraqi asylum seeker Salwan Momika who was shot dead in January 2025 after burning multiple copies of the Quran in Sweden.
It shouldn’t be illegal to burn a Quran
Britain is a country where, once more, it appears to be a crime to commit blasphemy. This is the inevitable and justifiable conclusion many have made following the news yesterday that a man who burnt a copy of the Quran was charged with “harassment, alarm or distress” against “the religious institution of Islam.” The charge made against Hamit Coskun, who allegedly performed the act outside the Turkish Consulate in London in February, is thought …
Charges against Koran-burning protester REWRITTEN after prosecutors accused of bringing in 'backdoor blasphemy law'
Charges against Koran-burning protester REWRITTEN after prosecutors accused of bringing in 'backdoor blasphemy law' - Prosecutors have removed references to "the institution of Islam" from charges against a man who burned a Koran in central London
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