Iran summons Denmark, Sweden chargés d'affaires over Quran burning
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Iran summons the chargés d'affaires of both Denmark and Sweden as a means of protesting the repeated violations committed against the Quran in these countries.
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Iranian demonstrators chant slogans during a protest of the burning of a Quran in Sweden, in front of the Swedish Embassy in Tehran, Iran, June 30, 2023 (AP)
The Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the chargés d'affaires of the Danish and Swedish embassies in Tehran on Sunday to express its strong protest against the continued disrespect towards the Holy Quran.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry stated that the chargés d'affaires of the Swedish and Danish embassies in Tehran were summoned due to the recurring insults directed at the Quran and Islamic sanctities in these two countries.
The statement condemned the repeated violations of the Holy Quran and held the governments of both countries fully responsible for any consequences resulting from such disrespect towards the Quran and Islamic sanctities.
Earlier, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian emphasized that the mission of the Swedish ambassador had ended, indicating that his country would not receive a new ambassador unless Sweden takes action to preserve the sanctity of the Holy Quran.
Despite international condemnations of the violation of the sanctity in Sweden, the Swedish police granted permission a few days ago for the extremist Salwan Momika to burn a copy of the Quran once again.
Several Muslim countries have protested the burning of the Quran, and the Iraqi government on July 20 expelled Sweden's ambassador to the country and severed its ties with Stockholm in response to the repeated Quran burnings in Sweden, which were permitted by the Swedish government.
Momika, an Iraqi-born refugee living in Sweden burned a copy of the Quran on June 28 outside Stockholm's main mosque. He was granted a permit from Swedish authorities before carrying out his act.
The police in Sweden have repeatedly denied permits for protests involving the desecration of the Quran, but their decision was overturned by courts under the pretext of supporting freedom of speech.
Iran's security ministry recently revealed that Salwan Momika was born in Iraq in 1986 and started working for the Israeli Mossad in 2019.
The government of Denmark, meanwhile, announced its intention to look into legal means to stop protests that involve burning holy texts in certain situations, basing their claim on security concerns after international backlash.
Arguing that it played into the hands of extremists, the government, in its Foreign Ministry statement, said it wants to "explore" intervening in circumstances where "other countries, cultures, and religions are being insulted, and where this could have significant negative consequences for Denmark, not least with regard to security."
According to the statement, the protests have "reached a level where Denmark, in many parts of the world across continents, is being viewed as a country that facilitates insult and denigration of the cultures, religions, and traditions of other countries."
The "primary purpose" of some of the actions, it continued, was provocation and "could have significant consequences."
In a separate statement, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson declared he maintained close contact with Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen and that his country was taking similar steps.
"We have also started to analyze the legal situation already... in order to consider measures to strengthen our national security and the security of Swedes in Sweden and around the world," Kristersson said in an Instagram post.
