A Muslim man who attacked another man who was burning a Koran outside the Turkish consulate in London has been spared jail.
Hamit Coskun, 51, shouted “f*** Islam”, “Islam is religion of terrorism” and “Koran is burning”, as he held a flaming Islamic text aloft during a protest in Rutland Gardens, Knightsbridge, west London, on 13 February.
Moussa Kadri then came out of a residential building and told Mr Coskun “I’m going to kill you”, before returning and slashing at him with a knife, later telling police he was protecting his religion, prosecutors said.
Judge Adam Hiddleston handed Kadri a 20-week prison sentence, suspended for 18 months, at Southwark Crown Court on Tuesday.
The judge said that the way Kadri lost his temper was “disgraceful”.
He went on: “Use of blades is a curse on our community.”
Kadri, 59, of Kensington, west London, had pleaded guilty to assault and having a bladed article in a public place.
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