Reaction to Koran desecration in Sweden
Türkiye, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia led the Muslim world’s outrage after Sweden allowed notorious habitual offender Rasmus Paludan to burn a copy of the Holy Quran under the guise of “freedom of expression”.
The Muslim world has erupted in anger and unrest after Sweden allowed a far-right racist politician Rasmus Paludan to burn a copy of the Muslim holy book the Koran in front of the Turkish embassy building in Stockholm.
Here are some of the initial reactions:
Turkey
“We condemn in the strongest possible way the heinous attack on our holy book, the Koran, in Sweden today (January 21), despite our repeated warnings before,” said a statement from the Turkish Foreign Ministry.
The ministry called the act “a direct hate crime” and said: “Allowing this anti-Islam act, which targets Muslims and insults our sacred values, under the guise of freedom of expression is completely unacceptable.”
“This heinous act is yet another example of the alarming level that Islamophobia and racist and discriminatory movements have reached in Europe.”
Pakistan
“This senseless and provocative act of Islamophobia hurts the religious sensibilities of over 1.5 billion Muslims around the world,” a statement from Pakistan’s foreign ministry said.
Such actions “are not covered by any legitimate expression of the right to freedom of expression or opinion, which carries responsibilities under international human rights law, such as the duty not to utter hate speech and incite people to violence.”
“Pakistan’s concerns are conveyed to the authorities in Sweden. We urge them to be mindful of the feelings of the people of Pakistan and Muslims worldwide and take measures to prevent Islamophobic acts,” the statement added.
Kuwait
The incident “hurts the sentiments of Muslims worldwide and marks serious provocation,” Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al Jaber Al Sabah said in statements quoted by state news agency KUNA.
He called on the international community “to shoulder responsibility by stopping such unacceptable acts and condemning all forms of hatred and extremism and holding the perpetrators accountable.”
READ MORE: Sweden’s permission to burn the Koran ‘racist’, ‘hate crime’: Cavusoglu
Reactions are pouring in from all over the world after the “evil attack” on the Koran in Sweden. Our correspondent Mustafa Fatih Yavuz reports from occupied East Jerusalem pic.twitter.com/5zuwPKOF4p
— TRT World (@trtworld) 21 January 2023
Saudi Arabia
“Saudi Arabia calls for spreading the values of dialogue, tolerance and coexistence and rejects hatred and extremism,” the Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement.
UAE
The UAE said it was against “any practice aimed at destabilizing security and stability contrary to human and moral values and principles”.
Qatar
Qatar condemned the Swedish authorities’ permission to burn the Holy Koran and calls on the international community to shoulder its responsibility to reject hatred and violence.
Iran
Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani called it an attempt to incite hatred and violence against Muslims, saying some European countries under the false pretense of advocating freedom of expression “allow extremist and radical elements to spread hatred against Islamic sanctities and values.”
Kanaani said that despite the strong emphasis on human rights in Islam, Europeans continue to “institutionalize anti-Islamism and Islamophobia” in their societies.
He added that the desecration of the Koran is a “clear example of spreading hatred and inciting violence against Muslims”, which has “nothing to do with freedom of speech and thought”.
READ MORE: Türkiye strongly condemns the “heinous attack” against the Koran in Sweden
READ MORE: Turkey calls Swedish envoy over permission to burn Koran in Stockholm
Swedish authorities give permission for a far-right political leader to burn a copy of the Koran in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm on Saturday. This latest sparked outrage in Türkiye and around the world and once again put Europe’s Islamophobia in the spotlight pic.twitter.com/2KUibG5fwl
— TRT World (@trtworld) 21 January 2023
Jordan
Jordan “condemned the burning of a copy of the Holy Qur’an in the Swedish capital Stockholm and stressed that the Kingdom rejected this act that incites hatred.”
It emphasized the need to spread the culture of peace and acceptance of the other and that “condemning extremism is a collective responsibility.”
Egypt
Egypt expressed its strong condemnation of the shameful act that is provoking the emotions of hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world.
Egypt warned of the dangers of the spread of such acts that offend religions and fuel hate speech and violence, and called for upholding the values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence and preventing the violation of all religions and their sanctities through such extremist practices that contradict the values of respect. for religion.
Organization of Islamic Cooperation
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation bloc said the “provocative action… targets Muslims, insults their sacred values and serves as further examples of the alarming level that Islamophobia has reached” and asked Sweden to punish those behind a “hate crime “.
READ MORE: Prominent sociologist notices that the Koran burns in Sweden as a “racist message”
Source: TRTWorld and agencies