Norway Quran desecration: Who is Umar Ilyas?

Social media was set ablaze with praises on Friday for a ‘Muslim hero’ who interrupted an anti-Islam rally last week to stop another man from burning a copy of the Holy Quran in Norway.

A scuffle broke out after the leader of the ‘Stop Islamisation of Norway (SIAN)’ rally, Lars Thorsen, tried to burn a copy of the holy book in the city of Kristiansand despite warnings from local police officials.
In a video on social media, the ‘Muslim hero’ could be seen jumping into the barricaded circle to save the holy book from being desecrated.

The rally soon turned violent, after which police took Thorsen and his attackers into custody.

The man who stopped Thorsen from burning the Holy Quran was being called Ilyas on social media, but his exact identity could not be ascertained.

Netizens took to social media to praise “Umar Ilyas” and also raise alarm over the rise of Islamophobia in Europe and around the world.

Later it turned out that the Muslim man was wrongly identified as Umer Ilyas. The man seen in the viral video is Omer Dabba who has also detailed the incident in his media interaction.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Twitter users have called for boycott of “Norway companies in Pakistan” over the incident.

Many users opposed the boycott call, saying Norway has nothing to do with the with the extremist who burned the Holy Quran.