Salwan Momika, a 37-year-old Iraqi who fled his country for Sweden, on Wednesday burned several pages of the Koran in front of a mosque during a rally authorized by the authorities.
A 37-year-old Iraqi burned a few pages of a copy of the Koran in front of Stockholm’s largest mosque in a “rally” authorized by Swedish police on Wednesday, arousing the ire of Ankara who denounced an “unacceptable” act.
This new incident could darken Swedish prospects for NATO membership, which Turkey is blocking.
The event, which coincides with Eid al-Adha, a holiday celebrated by Muslims around the world, brought together around a hundred onlookers and journalists.
Dressed in beige chinos and a light shirt, Salwan Momika trampled on the Koran several times before slipping slices of bacon into it and burning a few pages.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan immediately condemned the incident on Twitter: “It is unacceptable to allow these anti-Islamic actions under the pretext of freedom of expression.”
Washington joined in the criticism, while saying it supported Sweden’s NATO membership “as soon as possible”.
“We have always said that burning religious texts is disrespectful and offensive,” State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters.
“It is only hatred that hides behind the concepts of democracy and freedom”
The subject is sensitive in the Nordic country. A demonstration in January during which a Koran was burned in front of the Turkish embassy in Stockholm had already angered Ankara and the Muslim world, leading to demonstrations and calls for a boycott of Swedish products.
“It’s crazy, it’s absolutely insane, it’s only hatred that hides behind the concepts of democracy and freedom,” reacted Noa Omran, a 32-year-old artist who came to witness the scene.
Earlier in the day, the police had announced to authorize “the gathering”, considering that “the security risks” linked to the fact of burning the Koran were “not such as to prohibit it”. But at the end of the day, she announced that she was filing a complaint against the organizer, in particular for incitement to hatred.
In his request for prior authorization, the organizer of the book burning, Salwan Momika, said he wanted to “express (his) opinion about the Koran”. “I will tear up the Koran and burn it,” he wrote.
Mr. Momika had made a similar request in February, which was refused by the police.
According to an article in the Swedish daily Aftonbladet dated April 5, Mr. Momika assured that his intention was not to complicate Swedish membership of the Atlantic Alliance.
“I don’t want to harm this country which has welcomed me and which has preserved my dignity,” he told the newspaper, adding that he wanted to see the Koran banned in Sweden.