Fire, Faith, and Free Speech: The Koran-Burning Case Testing British Liberties

 

Hamit Coskun may be one of Britain’s most endangered men. In a bold and highly controversial act this February, the 50-year-old asylum seeker stood outside the Turkish consulate in London, pulled a Koran from his bag, and set it alight. What he describes as a symbolic protest has sparked widespread outrage and legal consequences, and it now stands to become a landmark case in the debate over freedom of expression.

"Encountering such treatment in a country like England, which I truly believed to be a place where freedom prevailed, was a real shock to me"
A quote from my interview with Hamit Coskun, a Turkish asylum seeker who is being prosecuted for burning a copy of the Koran outside the… pic.twitter.com/Py2BB3vqNA

— Toby Young (@toadmeister) May 28, 2025

 

The burning was caught on video and quickly went viral. What followed was a violent public assault on Coskun, and later, a terrifying encounter at his home in Derby, where he claims two Iraqi men broke in, brandishing a knife and an ashtray, threatening his life. Since then, police have relocated him to a safe house somewhere in the Midlands.

 

Coskun faces trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on charges of disorderly behaviour likely to cause “harassment, alarm or distress” under the Public Order Act. According to prosecutors, during the incident, Coskun swore and shouted “Islam is religion of terrorism” in broken English. He is accused of acting out of religious hostility.

 

Unrepentant, Coskun insists he will plead not guilty and has vowed to continue his campaign by burning more copies of the Koran in other cities, regardless of the outcome. “Absolutely I will carry on burning Korans,” he says. “I am an activist. I was really surprised I got charged because I really believe this country was a liberal democracy where freedom of expression existed and I was really shocked by the attitude towards me.”

 

His legal defence will invoke Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which protects freedom of expression. Interestingly, Coskun’s lawyers intend to draw on a case from 2001, when Sir Keir Starmer—then a human rights barrister—successfully defended peace activist Lindis Percy, who had been convicted for desecrating the American flag during a protest outside a U.S. airbase. Starmer argued at the time that “flag denigration is a form of protest activity renowned the world over,” and the High Court agreed, overturning Percy’s conviction under the same section of the Public Order Act now used against Coskun.

 

 

Lord Young of Acton, a Tory peer and general secretary of the Free Speech Union, said: “In 2001, Sir Keir Starmer successfully appealed the conviction of Lindis Percy for desecrating the American flag. He persuaded the High Court that the denigration of an object of veneration should not be a criminal offence... If Sir Keir was still a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, the Free Speech Union might well have hired him to defend Hamit Coskun.”

 

Coskun, a Kurdish-Armenian atheist, fled persecution in Turkey two and a half years ago. He claims to have spent nearly a decade imprisoned there for political activism. “I was abused and tortured,” he says. “On one occasion a gun was put to my neck.” His growing concern over the “Islamification” of Turkey under President Erdogan led to his act of protest in London. “I have been studying the Koran for 25 years now,” he says. “I am convinced it encourages terrorism.”

 

 

The backlash has been swift and severe. A video shows Coskun being physically assaulted by a man outside the consulate and later, a cyclist running over his hand. “I don’t speak English but I could tell the guy was threatening me,” Coskun recalls. “Then the delivery rider stamped on my hand and threw his bicycle on me before cycling off.” Later, two men allegedly broke into his home, showed him the video of the incident, and warned: “If you keep doing this you will die.”

 

Despite the fear and threats, he remains undeterred. “There is nothing wrong in questioning a religion,” he says. While insisting he doesn’t wish to offend, Coskun maintains it is his “democratic right” to burn the Koran. He even expresses admiration for far-right figure Tommy Robinson, stating, “I love him.”

 

Coskun now awaits his trial outcome but is already planning his next steps—a tour of Liverpool, Birmingham, and Glasgow, Koran in hand. “I am ready to pay the cost,” he says. “It’s OK. It’s not a problem. I know what could happen to me. They are after me.” The legal case may ultimately set new boundaries—or reaffirm old ones—on what freedom of speech really means in the UK today.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Telegraph  2025-05-30

 

 

3 hours ago, Social Media said:

I really believe this country was a liberal democracy where freedom of expression existed

Uninformed guy.

 

What would happen if you burned a bible ?

11 minutes ago, FlorC said:

Uninformed guy.

 

What would happen if you burned a bible ?

Absolutely nothing.  Maybe some elderly church ladies would angrily brew a cup of tea or perhaps write a letter to the Times.

 

In the US, people have already put a crucifix into a jar of urine and called it "art".  AFAIK they didnt have to live in hiding or fear for their life. By contrast, a minor journalist who decided to have a "draw Mohammed" campaign has been in hiding and not seen since. 

7 hours ago, Social Media said:

In 2001, Sir Keir Starmer successfully appealed the conviction of Lindis Percy for desecrating the American flag. He persuaded the High Court that the denigration of an object of veneration should not be a criminal offence.

 

This is actually quite amusing,  Not the burning of the American flag of course which I would put a far higher significance on than a fictional book, be it Harry Potter or a Koran, but that a previous anti-Western case of Starmer that will be used as the defense here using the same arguments he made.  

 

Quite an important case really though as depending on the outcome it could result in it being okay to burn the flags of an allied nation, or indeed any other book as I don't think anyone was ever charged for burning Harry Potter books (and there were many, many instances of this), but not okay to burn one specific work of fiction.    

8 hours ago, Social Media said:

Lord Young of Acton, a Tory peer and general secretary of the Free Speech Union, said: “In 2001, Sir Keir Starmer successfully appealed the conviction of Lindis Percy for desecrating the American flag. He persuaded the High Court that the denigration of an object of veneration should not be a criminal offence...

 

Now watch Starmer flip to try to bring in blasphemy laws to protect his favourite religion. 

8 hours ago, Social Media said:

The legal case may ultimately set new boundaries—or reaffirm old ones—on what freedom of speech really means in the UK today.

The only protest that matters is burning ALL hole-y books, national flags and guns. I'd go to that bonfire. Even if somebody brandished...an ashtray.

5 hours ago, FlorC said:

Uninformed guy.

 

What would happen if you burned a bible ?

Nothing. Not even Chuck Schumer writing a sternly worded letter - he's Jewish.

Too much consideration is give to the Muslim faith in the UK. 

 We should not allow a two tier  legal and religious system to cater for the muslim faith. 

Sharier courts and mosques are increasing and should be controlled. 

6 hours ago, FlorC said:

Uninformed guy.

 

What would happen if you burned a bible ?

If you burnt a Bible nothing would happen.

There are senior members of the institutions in the UK whose main purpose in life is to denigrate over a thousand years of British history and culture, and replace it with sharia law. Hence you can burn a Christian bible any where, anytime without any form of penalty, but if you burn the Qur'an you are in big trouble.

6 hours ago, FlorC said:

Uninformed guy.

 

What would happen if you burned a bible ?

A bolt of lightening would streak down from the clouds and smite the wrongdoer.

I would give him a gold medal and automatic citizenship.

26 minutes ago, jippytum said:

Too much consideration is give to the Muslim faith in the UK. 

 We should not allow a two tier  legal and religious system to cater for the muslim faith. 

Sharier courts and mosques are increasing and should be controlled. 

Don't you mean Sharia courts and mosques are increasing and should be BANNED?

The outcome of burning Koran or bible truely depends on the version and the material especially the cover. The long versions with thick covers are expected to burn longer. 

50 minutes ago, Photoguy21 said:

If you burnt a Bible nothing would happen.

If you are a UK pensioner you might get warm.

11 hours ago, Social Media said:

Coskun faces trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on charges of disorderly behaviour likely to cause “harassment, alarm or distress” under the Public Order Act.

 

Very lucky man, indeed!

 

Had he misgendered one of the security guards he'd likely be facing extended jail time, followed by deportation.

 

And Trump won't concern himself with free speech rights in this case, as he was just a non-citizen asylum seeker.  Free speech doesn't apply to them, y'know.

 

Disorderly behavior is appropriate.

 

Labour to jail people who use wrong gender pronouns on purpose under hate crime law

Purposely calling someone by the wrong gender pronoun could lead to jail time of up to two years as it may be treated as a hate crime under a Labour government.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1824045/labour-gender-pronouns-hate-crime-law

Just a disorderly behavior charge, nothing to get your hajib in a twist over.  NOT charged for burning a work of fiction, but on a breach of the peace offence.

 

If the great book of fairy tails were a protected religious work, he'd face serious charges, as he would had he used the wrong pronoun.

 

Woman arrested for misgendering a trans person on Twitter charged with trolling

Police have charged a mother in the UK for malicious communication after she referred to a trans woman as man on Twitter in a “campaign of targeted harassment”.

https://www.thepinknews.com/2019/09/05/trolling-malicious-communication-misgendering-stephanie-hayden-kate-scottow/

 

First UK street preacher reported as terrorist for 'misgendering' wins appeal: 'Orwellian and really alarming'

Dave McConnell, 42, was convicted in August under section 4A Public Order Act 1986 after he referred to a biological male who presented as a female by addressing the individual as "he" during a conversation with a police officer, according to his legal counsel at the London-based Christian Legal Centre.

https://www.foxnews.com/world/first-uk-street-preacher-reported-terrorist-misgendering-wins-appeal-orwellian-really-alarming

13 minutes ago, Dionigi said:

If you are a UK pensioner you might get warm.

 

But you'd be taxed for exceeding your allotted carbon footprint.

41 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

Don't you mean Sharia courts and mosques are increasing and should be BANNED?

 

I think he meant BURNED. With fire.

Fire, Faith, and Free Speech: The Koran-Burning Case Testing British Liberties 

 

Who cares what one burns    Quran  , Bible or a picture of the Pope, Queen or King  , it doesn't hurt anyone . 

Now they are going to make an big Issue out of this Because it's. The Qur'an is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a direct revelation from God (Allah). 

(one could say the Islam Dirty Book.)

14 hours ago, Social Media said:

He [Starmer QC] persuaded the High Court that the denigration of an object of veneration should not be a criminal offence.

The grandstanding idiot is not charged with denigrating an object of veneration.

 

He’s charged as follows:

 

14 hours ago, Social Media said:

Coskun faces trial at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on charges of disorderly behaviour likely to cause “harassment, alarm or distress” under the Public Order Act.

As for burning the U.S. flag, it’s not a crime in the U.S. (protected free speech) provided the flag is your own.

 

That said, only an idiot would expect to not face consequences if they were to travel around various U.S. cities burning Old Glory.

Likewise burning religious texts, do it enough times in enough places and pretend to be shocked by the outcome.

….

 

Now who is it that bangs on about flag burning?

3 hours ago, NoDisplayName said:

 

Very lucky man, indeed!

 

Had he misgendered one of the security guards he'd likely be facing extended jail time, followed by deportation.

 

And Trump won't concern himself with free speech rights in this case, as he was just a non-citizen asylum seeker.  Free speech doesn't apply to them, y'know.

 

Disorderly behavior is appropriate.

 

Labour to jail people who use wrong gender pronouns on purpose under hate crime law

Purposely calling someone by the wrong gender pronoun could lead to jail time of up to two years as it may be treated as a hate crime under a Labour government.

https://www.express.co.uk/news/politics/1824045/labour-gender-pronouns-hate-crime-law

And it's through that there Magna Charter,
As were signed by the Barons of old,
That in England to-day we can do what we like,
So long as we do what we're told.

15 hours ago, Social Media said:

Sir Keir Starmer

 

I'm sure he gay

So, he obtains asylum, can't speak English and commits a crime.  And he's clearly bent on touring the country, burning books based on his religious intolerance. He's exactly the type of immigrant troublemaker they want out of the country.

 

But because he's burning a Koran he's suddenly their hero, a useful idiot.

 

The hypocrisy is stunning.