Over the weekend, Norwegian activist Lars Thorsen, the leader of the group Stop Islamization of Norway (SIAN), survived a vehicle-ramming attack on a motorway after having participated in a Quran burning at the outskirts of Oslo.
Following the accident, two women, the driver and the passenger, have been arrested by Norwegian police for attacking Thorsen on purpose. Both are suspected of causing grievous bodily harm and for intentionally causing the collision. At least one of the women was present when SIAN burned the Quran outside Mortensrud mosque.
“We have every reason to believe that the SIAN car was hit deliberately, which it why it veered off the road and turned upside down” the Oslo police said.
A total of five people were in the damaged car, which was turned upside down as it was hit by the other car in a dramatic push, there were five people in total. They received medical assistance, but no one has been reported as seriously injured.
None of the women admitted criminal guilt. The accused driver claimed that the SIAN car approached them first and that it was self-defense.
The SIAN leader said the Quran burning were a response to charges brought against him on June 30.
“There was a verbal exchange and a little pushing, but otherwise it was relatively okay”, he recalled the events at the Mortensrud mosque to national broadcaster NRK. “When we drove from there, there was one who followed us in a car, and started to push my car”, Thorsen said.
He described the incident as “not very pleasant, but not surprising”.
“There was a verbal exchange and a little pushing, but otherwise it was relatively okay”, he recalled the events at the Mortensrud mosque to national broadcaster NRK. “When we drove from there, there was one who followed us in a car, and started to push my car”, Thorsen said.
He described the incident as “not very pleasant, but not surprising”.
Lawyer Aase Schartum-Hansen stressed that Quran-burning is in principle considered a legal statement.
SIAN lawyer John Christian Elden called the incident “an attack on freedom of expression”.
“My clients are fine. They have recovered from the attack safely and well, but are surprised that such an attack on freedom of expression can take place in Norway”, Elden said.
SIAN lawyer John Christian Elden called the incident “an attack on freedom of expression”.
“My clients are fine. They have recovered from the attack safely and well, but are surprised that such an attack on freedom of expression can take place in Norway”, Elden said.
Stop Islamization of Norway (SIAN) dates back to the early 2000s. Its stated goal is to counter the proliferation of Islam, which it views as a totalitarian political ideology that violates the Norwegian Constitution as well as contradicts democratic and humanitarian values.
SIAN is known for their public manifestations in celebration of free speech that at times include Quran burnings and other symbolic acts seen as provocative by Muslims. Similar methods are employed by fellow Islam critics, such as Danish Hard Line party and its leader Rasmus Paludan.
Norway's Muslim community has grown markedly, reaching some 6 percent of the country's population in a matter of decades. In some municipalities in Greater Oslo, where immigrants tend to cluster, the share of Muslims is higher.