Sweden arrests far-right politician Rasmus Paludan in absentia: Report

GENEVA (AA) - Far-right Danish-Swedish politician Rasmus Paludan, who burned a copy of the Quran earlier this year, has been reportedly arrested in absentia in Sweden.

The Malmo Prosecutor's Office issued an arrest warrant for Paludan on suspicion of “several crimes,” Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported.

Paludan has been investigated a couple of months ago for “incitement against a group of people, insult and gross assault against an official,” it said.

Speaking to the newspaper, Paludan claimed that "Swedish police in general and Malmo police, in particular, do not want to protect me, so it is dangerous for me to come to Sweden."

He said he wants to testify virtually from Denmark with the help of Danish police.

Paludan burned a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm in January under police protection and with permission from Swedish authorities.

The following week, he burned a copy of the Quran in front of a mosque in Denmark, prompting condemnation from many Muslim-majority countries, including Türkiye.