Hamit Coskun is a native of Turkey who now lives in the U.K., where he sought and was granted the status of political refugee. Coskun is an ex-Muslim who detests Islam, and to make clear his feelings about both Turkey and Islam, he set fire to a Qur’an outside the Turkish Embassy. The Crown Prosecution Service then prosecuted him for this act of what was termed “blasphemy,” and convicted him. He appealed the conviction and was acquitted by a higher court; then the Crown Prosecution, in turn, appealed that decision to acquit and tried to reinstate his conviction. But the High Court has just dismissed that appeal, standing up for the right of Hamit Coskun to express his contempt for Islam by setting a Qur’an on fire.
More on this rare victory for free speech — including “speech” that is non-verbal and performative — can be found here: “U.K. High Court Denies Prosecutor’s Appeal Targeting Free Speech Activist,” by Jules Gomes, Middle East Forum, March 5, 2026:
In a humiliating defeat for Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the High Court has dismissed an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) seeking to overturn the acquittal of a free-speech activist previously convicted of burning a Qur’an.
The CPS appealed to the High Court in November 2025 after the Southwark Crown Court dramatically reversed the sentence of the Westminster Magistrates’ Court against Hamit Coskun, who set fire to the Qur’an outside the Turkish Embassy in London on February 13, 2025.
Coskun, a 50-year-old political refugee from Turkey, committed an “act of desecration” while driven by a “deep-seated hatred of Islam and its followers,” provoking Muslims to commit acts of violence, the CPS had argued, seeking a conviction under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998.
Judge John McGarva convicted Coskun in June 2025, ruling that he had committed a “religiously aggravated” offense. However, Justice Joel Nathan Bennathan quashed the verdict in October 2025, declaring: “There is no offense of blasphemy in our law.”…
As Judge Bennathan said in his opinion quashing the verdict convicting Coskin of blasphemy, there is no “offense of blasphemy” in British law. But there is such an offense in the law of Islam, the Sharia, and it was that “offense of blasphemy” that British judges were attempting to accept, and apply. Judge Bennathan was having none of it. According to him freedom of expression “must include the right to express views that offend, shock, or disturb,” even if it involves burning a Qur’an, “an act that many Muslims find desperately upsetting and offensive,” Bennathan emphasized, handing a victory to the ex-Muslim atheist whose mother’s family was killed in the Armenian genocide.
The CPS told Focus on Western Islamism (FWI) that its case was “always that Coskun’s words, choice of location and burning of the Qur’an amounted to disorderly behaviour, and that at the time he demonstrated hostility towards a religious group.”
Yes, that’s exactly what he did. He was making a statement against Islam; he chose to do so for maximum effect right outside the Turkish Embassy. He did indeed “demonstrate hostility towards a religious group” — Muslims whose ancestors, he knew, were responsible for the murder of his Armenian mother and for another 1.2 million Armenians between 1915 and 1920. Why should he be punished for expressing his view?
The Coskun case will enter the history books as a major step toward retaking intellectual territory that had been conceded to the “sons of Allah,” a sign that we in the West do not punish what any religious group, including Islam, finds offensive.
In the U.K., after the High Court overturned the conviction of Hamit Coskun, no one should worry from now on that “blasphemy” will become a crime. Do what you want, whether you are a refugee from an Islamic regime, or simply a level-headed Western Infidel, to express your opposition to Islam. Hold up a placard depicting 54-year-old Muhammad holding the hand of nine-year-old Aisha. No one can argue that that pedophilic coupling did not take place; it’s in the Hadith of Bukhari and Muslim.
Or do as Hamit Coskun did in London and Martin Frost did in Manchester, and burn a Qur’an if you wish, to demonstrate your antipathy toward the faith. You have that right. Or perhaps, most devastating of all, simply hold up a poster that does nothing more than quote from the Qur’an and hadith. Have people at an anti-Islam rally carry posters that say just this: “Muslims are the best of peoples” (Qur’an 3:110) and “Non-Muslims are the most vile of created beings.” (Qur’an 98:6). On other placards have two quotes from Muhammad that can be found in the hadith: “I have been made victorious through terror” and “war is deception.” The display of those four quotations will send Muslims into a rage, not because they are false, but because, far more devastatingly, they are true.
Westman says
Muslims must realize that short of physical action any Western person has as much right to retort as a Muslim has to forbid under Western law.
Neither Allah or Jesus has a commanding seat at the table of Western law which is, wisely, separated from religion. If you want influence then offer reasons, based on its own merits, not threats of what you or Allah will do – which, historically, always boiled down to what “you” do.
GE says
Costumes is my new hero. I know how he feels. One of my great grandfathers was murdered by the Turks.
GE says
Should be Coskun—
I abhor spell check!😖
࿗Infidel࿘ says
I suspect it’s CoPilot at work 😈
gravenimage says
Hear, hear, GE!
James Lincoln says
Very rare good news out of the UK.
But I’ll take it
OLD GUY says
I’ll give them an “A” on that one.
tgusa says
Coskun is a 50-year-old political refugee from Turkey. He lived in an islamic dominated society. Woke white women will oppose him. They will say he doesn’t know what he is talking about. They know better.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/03/watch-woke-white-liberal-woman-melts-down-walks/
Woke white women don’t like the society they live in. We should arrange for their migration to an islamic dominated country. It is the old saying, be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.
Michelle says
It is unbelievable and ridiculous that there is a push to pave a road to turn someone’s life upside down for blasphemy. I thought people could be reasonable, have discussions, and decide for themselves about controversial issues. Islam is not compatible with freedom of and freedom from religion and forces itself on everyone when it can. Religious tolerance and tolerance of non-believers are out the window. Of course, Asia Bibi did not even commit blasphemy and was falsely accused and went to jail for 8-9 years in prison. The punishment did not fit the crime for which she was falsely accused. The book Truth Was My Crime by Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff effectively discusses her experience with blasphemy. Where is might makes right going to lead? Definitely going to see some very innocent individuals being overly abused and some ridiculous rules like no dogs, alcohol, pork, music, abundant slavery, and child marriage, etc. I thought blasphemy was a thing of the past. I feel bad Coskun had to go through this, and I am glad he did not go to a Pakistani-style jail for 8 years.
abu taleb says
We should play offensive by making a case of hate crime in Quran and Islam to get Quran and Quran banned forever. Quran says non muslims are the lowest creatures, dirty, not to be trusted etc. It is hate crime, racist (if muslims is a race), bigot etc. Muslims can kill, rape, rob non muslims on a pretext that the non muslims are the enemy of Islam, why can’t we use the argument to ban Islam?
David M says
Exactly. Elon Musk has been bankrolling Tommy Robinson’s defense cases, I’d like to see him go on the offense next & do a case to get the Quran banned for enciting violence.
Captain Quirk says
Hear, hear!
࿗Infidel࿘ says
Has he gone into islam? Grok used to be pretty defensive about the qur’an, although there was one Israeli auther Ofer Binstok who would query it openly on @X and corner it until it was forced to concede what’s obvious all along
Barney says
I agree, Ab: we should start to firmly argue back, asap and on all fronts: 1) in the absence of contemporary evidence that mohamed lived, the working hypothesis must be that he has never existed; 2) in view of this fact, the working hypothesis concerning his ‘biography’ therefore must be that it’s one big lie; 3) the koran actively incites to murder and genocide (e.g. sura’s 8: 39 and 2:191). This is incitement to criminal activity. For Europe it must be added that article 9, para 2 of the European convention for human rights allows for the limitation of the ‘Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs (…) to such limitations as are prescribed by law and are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of public safety, for the protection of public order, health or morals, or for the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.’ And are there such limitations? You bet: all the penal codes of the countries signatory to the convention.. I’m totally convinced that ‘Kill them wherever you find them’ will qualify as a crime under any of these penal codes. Actuallymultiple crimes.
David Young says
I will be Putting this to Rupert Lowe Head of Restore Britain!
UMM says
At last some wisdom prevailed in UK Justice .
As such there should not be any law of Blasphemy. If one has full trust/faith in the power of almighty (be he Allah or God or Ishwar-Ram, Krisna, Shankar etc.) one should leave it to the Almighty to punish him/her as per his so-called sin.
By the way to punish the so called pertipators by human being itself should be considered an act of Blasphemy as he/she intervenes in the field of Almighty.
Waldorf says
Simple: ‘Nulla poena sine praevia lege’: ‘No punishment without a prior law (making the action punishable)’: If it’s not forbidden, you can’ t be punished for it. Elementary.
Andrew Blackadder says
It appears to me that the average muslim who follows the teachings in the Quran are extremely shallow in their faith as what I say about their belief system causes them to act out and wish to kill me because I suggest islam is a Fascist Religious Cult of Death and of course they want me to know theirs is a religion of peace while trying to cut off my head.
If they tell me my faith or religion is a bunch of garbage then I merely shine it on as their opinions of me or my faith mean nothing whatsoever to me however my opinion of them seems extremely important.
Who is deeper and stronger in their faith?.
Not a trick question.
Stacy says
Blasphemy laws?
UK and EU claim they are secularist and so is their laws. They allow and encourage blasphemy against Christianity… And then they enforce Islamic blasphemy laws?
So Islam tried to conquer Europe for over a thousand years. Multiple invasions. Vatican sacked multiple times.
And all they had to do was pretend to be immigrants and victims of their own fellow Muslims…
David M says
All they had to do is wait for the Labor party to be elected under Keir Starmer.