Despite the initial reports circulating about the death of Salwan Momika, an Iraqi national involved in multiple incidents of desecration of the Holy Quran, there has been no official response from Norway hours later.
Salwan Momika recently announced that he had relocated to Norway from Sweden before his reported death. “I applied for asylum and international protection in Norway because Sweden does not accept asylum for philosophers and thinkers, but only accepts asylum for terrorists,” he had said.
According to a far-right website called Document, the Norwegian Police’s Immigration Unit claimed to be unaware of Salwan Momika’s reported death in Norway.
The police’s immigration unit is not aware that someone with the above name [Salwan Momika] has died in Norway recently,” the communications department of the police unit said.
Despite this news, there has been no official public statement from the Norwegian government regarding the reported death of Salwan Momika.
Salwan Momika, who identified as a ‘liberal atheist,’ was known for his involvement in multiple acts of desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden, reportedly done with the permission of Swedish authorities. His demonstrations were often staged outside embassies of Muslim countries.
Radio Genoa initially reported the death of 37-year-old Salwan Momika but later clarified that further confirmation was needed. Despite the news circulating on social media throughout Tuesday, Norwegian authorities remained silent, neither confirming nor denying the reports.
“Those who announced Momika’s death with over 1 million impressions deleted the tweet. We are waiting for further confirmation,” Radio Genoa posted on X.
“The lifeless body of Iraqi refugee and Islamic critic Salwan Sabah Matti Momika has been found in Norway. Momika was known for organizing demonstrations in Sweden where he publicly burned the Koran several times,” Radio Genoa had previously posted.
The lifeless body of Iraqi refugee and Islam critic Salwan Sabah Matti Momika has been found in Norway. Momika was known for organizing demonstrations in Sweden where he publicly burn Koran several times.https://t.co/I9yOTeSQOJ
— RadioGenoa (@RadioGenoa) April 2, 2024
Despite reports circulating for 12 hours from Radio Genoa and other outlets, Norwegian authorities remained silent. A Community Note on X later flagged the Radio Genoa posts, stating that the “rumors” had been “debunked.”
Furthermore, there were reports of multiple attempts to update Momika’s Wikipedia page since April 1.
