Iran, Iraq Call for OIC Emergency Meeting after Desecration of Quran
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The foreign ministers of Iran and Iraq denounced the repeated desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden as an insult to rationality and freedom of speech, calling for a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to discuss the matter.
In a telephone conversation on Thursday, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and his Iraqi counterpart Fuad Hussein strongly condemned the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden.
The two diplomats described the defiling of the Quran as an insult to rationality and freedom of speech and condemned the irresponsible behavior of the Swedish government.
They also underlined the need for the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to hold a meeting in this regard.
The phone call came hours after Salwan Momika, a Sweden-based Iraqi refugee, stomped on a copy of the Quran and kicked the Muslim holy book during a demonstration outside Stockholm’s main mosque amid strict protection provided for the rally by the Swedish police.
The act of sacrilege has opened the floodgates of protest across the world's Muslim community, including in Iran, which has summoned the Swedish ambassador to Tehran, conveying the Islamic Republic's vehement condemnation of the heinous act.
This was the second time Momika was disrespecting the Quran amid the approval of Sweden's authorities. He had set a copy of the holy book on fire last month too, prompting similar raging protests across the Muslim world and causing the Iranian Foreign Ministry to summon Sweden's chargé d'affaires.