Iran says desecration of Quran in Sweden 'fuels terrorism, extremism'

By Syed Zafar Mehdi

TEHRAN (AA) – Iran's Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Thursday strongly condemned the desecration of the holy Quran by a right-wing man in Sweden’s capital.

In a Twitter post, Iran's top diplomat said the entire Islamic world "strongly condemns the insult to the holy books and the Holy Quran."

Rebuking the Swedish authorities, Amir-Abdollahian said allowing the desecration of holy sanctities and the Islamic holy book "without any justification" is "not acceptable.”

During a demonstration allowed by Swedish police on Wednesday, which coincided with the holy Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha, a 37-year-old man named Salwan Momika was seen tearing up and setting ablaze pages of the Quran.

The incident took place outside the Stockholm Central Mosque and has drawn widespread condemnation worldwide.

The foreign minister said allowing such acts of blasphemy in the name of "democracy and freedom" only "encourages terrorism and extremism."

He hastened to warn that "its smoke, before going in any direction, will hit the eyes of the West."

Earlier on Thursday, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani in a statement called the incident in Sweden “provocative, ill-considered and unacceptable."

“The government and people of the Islamic Republic of Iran do not tolerate such an insult and strongly condemn it,” he said.

Kanaani said the Swedish authorities are "expected to seriously consider the principle of responsibility and accountability" in such cases and "prevent the repetition of insults to sacred sanctities."

It is not the first instance of Swedish authorities allowing the desecration of Islam's holiest book. In January, Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the Danish far-right party Stram Kure burned the holy Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm.

At the time, Iran called the incident an attempt to stoke hatred and violence against Muslims and accused some European countries of allowing extremists to spread hatred against Islamic sanctities and values “under the false pretext of advocating freedom of speech.”