Thousands rally in Pakistan to condemn Quran burning
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The desecration of the Quran in Sweden has enraged Muslims globally and sparked international outrage.
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Activists of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) party shout anti-Sweden slogans during a demonstration in Multan, Pakistan on July 3, 2023. (AFP)
Thousands protested in Pakistan in response to the burning of the Holy Quran in Sweden.
On June 28, a man named Salwan Momika, 37, burned a copy of the Muslim Holy book outside the Stockholm Central Mosque. He was granted a permit from Swedish authorities before carrying out his act.
It happened to coincide with the beginning of the Eid al-Adha celebration and the end of the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, inciting outrage throughout the Muslim world.
Read more: Iran not to send new envoy to Sweden due to Quran desecration
Pakistan's Prime Minister previously called for Friday to be "a day to uphold the Quran's sanctity" and called for mass protests.
Nearly 3,000 supporters of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) party in Karachi marched to condemn Sweden, while 5,000 protested in the city of Lahore.
The protesters burned Swedish flags and chanted that "the Quran is our red line," while others held signs with "Boycott Sweden" on them.
Some called for the expulsion of the Swedish ambassador, as well as ending diplomatic ties with the country that allowed the burning.
Following The Holy Quran burning incident in Sweden, the president of the Istehkam-e-Pakistan party (IPP), Abdul Aleem Khan’s social media team started a hashtag to boycott Swedish brands on Twitter.
He stated that products made under the following Swedish brands, Volvo, IKEA, Spotify, Electrolux, Ericsson, Essity, Assa Abloy, and Skanska should be boycotted through the hashtag #BoycottSwedishBrands which has already gained popularity with top trends on Twitter.
“The desecration of the Holy Quran on Eid day with the permission of the Swedish government is extremely heartbreaking, reprehensible, and shameful. Hurting sentiments of more than 2 billion Muslims under the guise of freedom of expression reflects the sick thinking of Western leaders. The purpose of such events is to create outrage among Muslims," he tweeted.
The United Nations' Human Rights Council said it will hold an urgent session in the upcoming days to tackle recent incidents of Quran burning in Europe, a council spokesperson said Tuesday.
Pope Francis denounced the decision by Sweden to allow the desecration of a copy of the Quran outside a Stockholm mosque, voicing “anger and disgust” over the move.
