Audio By Carbonatix
An Australian man who punched and stomped on a pregnant Muslim woman has been sentenced to three years in prison.
Rana Elasmar, a mother of four, was 38 weeks pregnant when the attack took place last November, according to CNN affiliate Nine News. She was sitting in a Sydney cafe, wearing a hijab, when Stipe Lozina approached her table.
After briefly speaking to her, Lozina punched Elasmar several times and stomped on her head when she fell to the ground. Elasmar's friends and other patrons leapt from their seats to restrain him.
Lozina allegedly made a racist remark before the unprovoked attack, according to Nine News. Elasmar told Nine News that she had been focused on protecting her unborn baby.
She suffered minor injuries in the attack and her son was unharmed.
"If you feel the right to physically or verbally abuse somebody who looks a bit different than you, then Australia's not the right country for you," she told reporters outside court last month.
Months after the attack, Elasmar was still experiencing the physical and psychological effects, her sister told CNN affiliate Seven News in June.
Lozina pleaded guilty to assault, but he claimed it was not an Islamophobic or racist attack. "I don't hate them, but I don't get along with them. I've got no business with them," Lozina said in court, according to Nine News.
On Thursday, he was sentenced to a maximum of three years in jail, with a non-parole period of two years.
Latest Stories
-
NADMO dismisses claims residents were not warned before Weija Dam spillage
33 minutes -
Government begins payment of 2020 batch of nurses and midwives arrears
36 minutes -
Controversial anti-LGBTQ bill presented to Parliament for second reading
39 minutes -
Deloitte Partner urges clear, consistent policies to govern mining license renewals, local content
1 hour -
Xenophobic attacks: Ghana must pursue justice for victims beyond evacuation – Bosome Freho MP
1 hour -
BOPP positions sustainable agribusiness as investment frontier
1 hour -
Ga Mantse demands action against chiefs selling lands on waterways
1 hour -
South African Tourism condemns anti-immigrant attacks, reassures African travellers
1 hour -
APSU 2002 Year Group announces key leadership appointments for 97th anniversary hosting & BOLT Steering Committee
2 hours -
Government backs hybrid model for Ghana’s extractive sector, rejects move to shut out foreign investors
2 hours -
LMWG commends Heath Goldfields on 5-year community development plan for Prestea
2 hours -
Eswatini champions SiSwati stories in digital age at World Book Day 2026
2 hours -
Only weak men forgive cheating partner – Yul Edochie
2 hours -
Meta repeatedly snubs EU body over Facebook and Instagram user bans
2 hours -
Family wealth should be viewed as asset class for building transgenerational enterprises – Alex Dadey
2 hours