Swedish court sentences far-right leader to prison for anti-Islam practices

Danish-Swedish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan has been sentenced to four months in prison by a Swedish court for incitement against an ethnic group, after burning copies of the Holy Qur’an and making offensive statements about Muslims, news reports said.

Paludan, the leader of the Danish Stram Kurs (Hard Line) party, became the first individual in Sweden to be tried and sentenced for Qur’an-burning actions during a public protest. The Malmö district court convicted Paludan of two counts of incitement against an ethnic group and one count of insult stemming from incidents in 2022.

During these events, Paludan set fire to the Qur’an, placed bacon around it, and made derogatory statements about Muslims, including that “Muslims do not like western democracy” and “Muslims like to use violence as a means of communication.” In addition to the prison sentence, Paludan was ordered to pay damages and fees totaling 80,800 kroner (£5,822).

This ruling comes amid heightened scrutiny in Sweden over freedom of expression, sparked by a series of Qur’an-burning protests in 2023. These incidents, some occurring outside the Swedish parliament, fueled debate over the country’s liberal stance on free speech and led to strained diplomatic relations with Muslim-majority nations.