Man Convicted for Quran Burning Outside Consulate

Hamit Coskun, a 50-year-old Turkish-born atheist, was convicted in London of a religiously aggravated public order offence for burning a Qur’an and shouting anti-Islamic slurs outside the Turkish consulate. Judge John McGarva found that Coskun's conduct was disorderly due to the timing, location, and abusive language, not the act of burning the Qur’an itself. Coskun, supported financially by the National Secular Society and Free Speech Union, argued he was protesting the Turkish government and exercising free speech. The Crown Prosecution Service emphasized that Coskun was prosecuted for his disorderly behavior, not for burning a religious book. Critics, including Conservative politicians and free-speech groups, argue the conviction effectively reintroduces blasphemy laws abolished in 2008. The protest was further marked by an incident in which Coskun was allegedly attacked by a passerby wielding a knife.