A video shared on Facebook purportedly shows a Swedish protester being attacked by Muslim onlookers as he burns a Qur’an.

Verdict: Misleading

The video is from 2021 and takes place in Denmark, not Sweden.

Fact Check:

President of Turkey Tayyip Erdogan has stifled ratification of NATO membership of Sweden and Finland as he faces a tight re-election race,  The New York Times reported. This is due, in part, to an incident in Sweden that involved the burning of a Qur’an, Reuters reported.

A post claims to show a recent video of a protester being attacked after he burned a Quran in Stockholm, Sweden. The video shows a man in a black hat and hoodie burning a book. “Some Muslims step to a man burning the Quran in Sweden,” the post reads. “Hmmm…FREEDOM OF SPEECH can also mean FREEDOM TO GET YOUR BUTT KICKED if you step out of line.”

This caption is inaccurate. A reverse image search found the footage stems from a 2021 video in Copenhagen, Demark. The video features representatives from the political party Stram Kurs (Hard Line) on a livestream burning a Qur’an before bystanders attacked him. The representatives can also be seen hitting the Qur’an back and forth with ping pong paddles.

Recently, Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Stram Kurs party, was seen outside of the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden burning the Qur’an. He also burned another copy of the Qur’an outside a Mosque in Denmark. Paludan was accompanied by police during both incidents and was not attacked during either of these protests.

The Turkish Embassy responded to Paludan’s demonstrations. According to Reuters, Paludan stated, “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the vile attack on our holy book.” The Turkish Embassy called for Sweden and other countries to take action against Islamophobia. (RELATED: Does This Photo Show A Former UK Health Minister With His Book ‘How To Get Away With Muder?’)

This is not the first time misinformation about a foreign country has been published online. Check Your Fact recently debunked a claim the U.K. banned COVID-19 boosters for people under 50.