The Somali government condemned the Swedish authorities’ allowing a far-right, anti-Muslim racist leader to burn a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm on Saturday.
The government’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said in a Sunday statement that burning the Holy Qur’an represents a blatant violation of religious sanctities and a provocation to the feelings of Muslims worldwide.
“Allowing this hateful act that insults Islamic sanctities and values is completely unacceptable. It is nothing but a demagogic practice that promotes hatred and racism and serves the agendas of extremism and terrorism.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said it affirms the position of the Federal Republic of Somalia, calling for the importance of spreading the values of dialogue, tolerance and coexistence and rejecting hate speech and violence.
The Ministry “renewed the importance of respecting religious symbols, refraining from provoking hatred and fueling strife through abuse and distortion of religions, sanctities and Islamic rituals.”
Somalia called on Sweden to take strong measures against the rising tide of hatred against Muslims. It urged the international community to shoulder their responsibilities in curbing Islamophobia.
Diplomatic sources said that the Türkish government summoned Sweden’s ambassador to Ankara after the Swedish government allowed the extremist to burn a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.
Condemnations continued to pour in from across the Islamic world over the burning of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, by a Swedish-Danish right-wing extremist in the Swedish capital, Stockholm.
Rasmus Paludan, the leader of the Stram Kurs (Hard Line) Party, under the protection of police and with permission from the government, burned a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm on Saturday.
However, Sweden’s prime minister condemned as “deeply disrespectful” the weekend burning of a Quran in Stockholm.
