BAGHDAD: Iraq has warned that it will cut diplomatic ties with Sweden if it allows a repeat of last month’s public desecration of the holy Qur’an, as there are reports that a second protest is being planned to publicly burn the holiest book in Islam.
It would have come just weeks after an Iraqi migrant Salwan Momika said he wanted to underline the importance of freedom of speech when he publicly desecrated the copy of Qur’an on 28 June.
Iraqi government’s warning came after hundreds of protesters attacked the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in the wee hours of Thursday, scaling its walls and set it on fire in protest against the desecration of the Qur’an in Sweden, Arab News reported.
Sweden condemns attack on embassy
The Swedish foreign ministry said in a statement that all embassy staff were safe, condemning the storming of the diplomatic building and underlining the need for Iraqi government to protect diplomatic missions.
Iraqi authorities later said that twenty protesters were arrested following the incident.
The demonstration was called by the Shiite religious leader Muqtada Sadr’s supporters to protest the second expected Qur’an desecration in Sweden in weeks.
Sadr, one of the most powerful figures in iraq, commands hundreds of thousands of followers and supporters whom he has at times brought out to the streets.
Swedish media reported on Wednesday that police accepted an application for a public gathering in front of the Iraqi embassy in the capital city of Stockholm on Thursday.
The application says the applicant requested to desecrate the Qur’an and the Iraqi flag.
Iraq’s Foreign Ministry released a statement condemning the attack on embassy. It said that the government has instructed the security authorities to urgently investigate and take the necessary security steps in order to uncover the circumstances of the incident and find out the perpetrators and hold them accountable according to the relevant law.
It added that the ministry condemn all attacks on diplomats missions and staff.
