Al-Sadr’s supporters renew condemnation of Quran desecration after Friday prayers

Shafaq News / On Friday, Sadrist Supporters renewed their condemnation of the Qur’an desecration by Salwan Momika – an Iraqi refugee in Sweden – and burned the Swedish and LGTB+ rainbow flags.

This came after supporters of Sadrist leader, Muqtada al-Sadr, performed Friday prayers in Sadr City, east of the capital Baghdad.

Today’s prayers were performed in the streets amid scorching temperatures that exceeded 45 degrees Celsius, where many worshipers used umbrellas, to prevent direct sun exposure.

On Thursday, in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm, Salwan Momika once more vandalized religious icons such as Muqtada al-Sadr and Ali Khamenei, and tore the Quran and the Iraqi flag while being escorted by Swedish police.

On June 28, the first day of Eid al-Adha, a protest was held outside the main Stockholm mosque, where a copy of the Quran was burned, and Swedish police allowed a demonstration to take place, with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Christersson stating that the approval was "legitimate but inappropriate."

The burning of the Quran in Stockholm sparked a wave of condemnation around the world, with Iraq calling on the Swedish authorities to extradite the migrant responsible for the incident. Moreover, several state leaders along with the secretary-general of the Arab League and the president of the Gulf Cooperation Council condemned the incident.