MAGA influencer who burned Quran with flamethrower banned from entering UK

WorldPolitics
20 Apr 2026 • 10:55 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

MAGA influencer who burned Quran with flamethrower banned from entering UK

  • Anti-Islam influencer Valentina Gomez has been barred from entering the UK by the Home Secretary.
  • Gomez had previously claimed to have secured a UK electronic travel authorisation (ETA) and was scheduled to speak at a 'Unite the Kingdom' rally organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson in May.
  • The government is understood to have intervened on the grounds that her presence would not be conducive to the public good.
  • The justification mirrors the reason given earlier this month for blocking rapper Kanye West, also known as Ye, from entering the UK to play at a festival.
  • US-based Gomez has gained notoriety for anti-Islam stunts, including burning the Quran, during a failed Republican campaign in Missouri.

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