Iraqi Presidency Accuses Quran Burning in Sweden and Denmark of Aiming to Tarnish Country's Image
Shafaq News / On Saturday, the Iraqi presidency said that burning the Quran in Sweden and Denmark is a step orchestrated to "provoke Iraqis and tarnish the country's image as a safe destination for foreign missions."
"While we condemn the heinous attacks on the Holy Quran, we call on international organizations and Western governments to stop the practices of spreading hatred, whatever the pretext," the presidency stated.
It urged "political forces, religious and social actors to be cautious and to avoid falling for the sedition scheme carried out by hateful figures living in western countries, exploiting their laws to implement their sinister goals against Iraq and Iraqis."
The presidency continued, "The events show the existence of a scheme aimed solely at provoking Iraqis and portraying our country as an unsafe place for foreign missions, as well as pushing for diplomatic measures that will affect Iraqis both inside and outside the country who have been forced by circumstances to migrate and seek refuge in countries that are witnessing provocative acts today."
While recognizing the right of citizens and political forces in Iraq to express their condemnation of any attacks on their beliefs, The presidency stressed the need for such expressions not to harm the state or its people and not to deprive citizens abroad of diplomatic services and communication with their homeland.
The Iraqi presidency urged its citizens to remain vigilant and not be provoked by those who "manufacture crises" abroad to distort the image of a secure and stable Iraq. Instead, it encouraged them to use peaceful and legal means to express their views, ensuring the preservation of Iraq's international reputation and cooperation with other nations.
The presidency's stance comes after members of an Islamophobic group in Denmark burned a copy of the Muslims' holy book and Iraqi flag amid outrage and anger across the Muslim world over the desecration of the Quran approved by Sweden.
The extremist group called Danske Patrioter burned the Muslim holy book before Iraq's Embassy in Copenhagen on Friday.
They also carried a banner with insulting slogans against Islam before stamping the Iraqi flag and a copy of the Quran under police protection, as seen in the videos they shared on social media.
The group said they did this to protest the attack against Sweden's Embassy in Baghdad.
Early on Thursday morning, a crowd of Iraqis stormed Sweden's Embassy in Baghdad and set it ablaze in protest against the June 28 burning of a copy of the Quran by Salwan Momika, an Iraq-born Christian extremist who now lives in Sweden.
Later, Iraq's prime minister Mohammed S. Al-Sudani ordered the Swedish ambassador's expulsion from Iraq and the withdrawal of the Iraqi charge d'affaires from Sweden.
Before that, widespread condemnation from across the Islamic world, including Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Senegal, Mauritania, and Turkiye, was elicited over the burning of the Quran.
Thousands protested in Pakistan and Iraq, Morocco recalled its envoy to Sweden, Iran delayed appointing a new ambassador to Sweden, and other countries denounced the act in protest against Stockholm.
