2 men arrested for watching video of Koran burning

[Hilarious Clinton 452]

In a disturbing development, Northumbria Police in Gateshead last week arrested two men after they watched and shared a video on Facebook of a man burning the Koran in the US during the recent 9/11 commemoration at Ground Zero in New York.

The men were drinking in the Bugle pub, Leam Lane, Gateshead, when they were arrested after watching and sharing the videos.

Around 30 people staged a protest outside Gateshead police station on Wednesday evening, the 15th of September, following the arrests.

The group stood outside the doors to the police station with an England flag for about three hours watched by a contingent of uniformed officers.The protesters had gathered at around 8pm after the two men were arrested earlier in the day on ‘suspicion of inciting racial hatred’.

The protest continued until around 11pm when the two arrested men were bailed pending further enquiries.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

In a disturbing development, Northumbria Police in Gateshead last week arrested two men after they watched and shared a video on Facebook of a man burning the Koran in the US during the recent 9/11 commemoration at Ground Zero in New York.

The men were drinking in the Bugle pub, Leam Lane, Gateshead, when they were arrested after watching and sharing the videos.

Around 30 people staged a protest outside Gateshead police station on Wednesday evening, the 15th of September, following the arrests.

The group stood outside the doors to the police station with an England flag for about three hours watched by a contingent of uniformed officers.The protesters had gathered at around 8pm after the two men were arrested earlier in the day on ‘suspicion of inciting racial hatred’.

The protest continued until around 11pm when the two arrested men were bailed pending further enquiries.

Given what I have seen (and this is confirmed by Johannes and Regina Weidenmuller, proprietors of Brixton-area's Beautiful Books), Muslim hate is already present (and there is no need to "incite")--the charge is absolutely twaddle!

[Sofiyya 1,687]

Never mind, I've got it now.

Edited September 21, 2010 by Sofiyya

[mawilson 2,133]

"Land of the free indeed"

[Peikko 1,575]

I can understand an American believing that you can get arrested for watching a U-Tube video in a pub (and not knowing the nature of the website that he linked to story from) I find it hard to understand a Brit falling for this trash faux news. Make a google search and find a non-chinese whispers or hate site carrying this story. If the neither the Daily Mail nor the local press are carrying it in any form, one can be certain that this is at best misinterpretation of a real event, and at worst fictitious. Take your pick. Of course, if you want to believe it, I suggest you join the BNP or similar because those are you kindred spirits

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

They sound like BNP types.

[Bad_Daddy 2,209]

Europe is long due for some changes. The arrest of these two men just goes to show how wrong things have gotten in the West.

[ready4ONE 5,400]

The story does seem conspicuously absent from anything resembling an actual news source...

[Danno 1,228]

I can understand an American believing that you can get arrested for watching a U-Tube video in a pub (and not knowing the nature of the website that he linked to story from) I find it hard to understand a Brit falling for this trash faux news. Make a google search and find a non-chinese whispers or hate site carrying this story. If the neither the Daily Mail nor the local press are carrying it in any form, one can be certain that this is at best misinterpretation of a real event, and at worst fictitious. Take your pick. Of course, if you want to believe it, I suggest you join the BNP or similar because those are you kindred spirits

So what you are saying is.... These guys might have just been guilty of viewing an unapproved website?

Does the UK have laws against visiting "baD web sites"?

[SMR 368]

So what you are saying is.... These guys might have just been guilty of viewing an unapproved website?

Does the UK have laws against visiting "baD web sites"?

I'm pretty sure you misunderstood MC's point. She's claiming that the new-source that the OP referenced is not reputable and that the events described in the OP probably never took place, at least not in the form that the article describes.

[Peikko 1,575]

So what you are saying is.... These guys might have just been guilty of viewing an unapproved website?

Does the UK have laws against visiting "baD web sites"?

No Danno, I am not saying that. Not even close - people in the UK can personally view whatever websites are available apart from those that promote illegal acts (like kiddy porn)

What I said was that if you are not a UK resident you might consider the source website of the OP post as legitimate (well, if you do not even bother to look at it but were simply trying to find a source that is not a US right wing extremist blog). It is not.

Edited September 22, 2010 by Madame Cleo

[Danno 1,228]

I'm pretty sure you misunderstood MC's point. She's claiming that the new-source that the OP referenced is not reputable and that the events described in the OP probably never took place, at least not in the form that the article describes.

Wel that certainly makes more sense.

[Peikko 1,575]

I'm pretty sure you misunderstood MC's point. She's claiming that the new-source that the OP referenced is not reputable and that the events described in the OP probably never took place, at least not in the form that the article describes.

Thank you. That is entirely correct. From the quick google I tried, I could only find this on extremist blogs and the BNP website. No mention of it in the Daily Mail (main stream right wing bias) nor most tellingly any version of the story in local online news but I admit I did not spend hours searching. I suspect something did happen, but nothing that relates to how this is being presented here. The UK is not a place where you can be arrested for simply watching U-Tube videos in the pub, not even U-Tube videos of quran burnings. These types of stories are very mischievous and the aim is to make ordinary people fear specific members of the community because they are allegedly endangering their way of life. It is malicious but par for the course for Nationalists.

[Danno 1,228]

These types of stories are very mischievous and the aim is to make ordinary people fear specific members of the community because they are allegedly endangering their way of life. It is malicious but par for the course for Nationalists.

And those "members of the community in most of these cases are Politicians who would make such a law.

When I read of such stories, I don't blame anyone but Law makers.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Danno would be in favor of this development. He is against people having rights. He thinks what we can do, watch, say should be determined by the majority and what is popular. MC would say it is because the UN says so. Too bad for the watchers of this video they were in a country that does not respect individual rights.