Monitoring Desk
RIYADH: The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia denounced on Sunday the act of burning of the Holy Qur’an by far-right demonstrators in Stockholm, Sweden, over the weekend.
Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al-Sheikh described the act as “absurd and disgraceful” in remarks carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).
“This is a provocative action against one and a half billion Muslims across the world. It fuels conflict and serves the advocates of extremism,” Saudi Grand Mufti said.
He lauded a statement issued by the Saudi Foreign Ministry that condemned Swedish authorities for allowing the act of the holy Qur’an burning outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, Sweden.
Saudi foreign ministry denounces Qur’an burning incident
The Saudi Foreign Ministry reiterated Saudi Arabia’s position in “calling for the significance of spreading the values of dialogue, coexistence, and tolerance, and rejecting extremism and hatred,” Saudi Press Agency reported.
Several Muslim countries condemned the Qur’an burning incident.
Morocco said it was “astonished” that Swedish authorities had allowed the incident to take place “in front of the forces of order.”
UAE, Indonesia, and Kuwait also issued condemnatory statements, as did the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).
