ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraq’s Chief Justice on Monday told the Swedish ambassador to Baghdad that the government and people of Iraq are determined to protect the safety of diplomatic envoys in the country; days after angry protesters breached the Swedish embassy’s building in the Iraqi capital.
Iraqi refugee Salwan Momika, 37, stomped on and burnt pages of the Islamic holy book outside a mosque in Stockholm on Wednesday as Muslims around the world were celebrating the first day of Eid al-Adha.
The action has been condemned by many Islamic countries, with the strongest reactions coming out of Momika’s home country Iraq, where dozens of influential Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr supporters on Thursday breached the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in protest. The protesters entered the building’s courtyard but caused no damage.
Faiq Zidan, president of Iraq's Supreme Judicial Council, met with several European Union ministers in Baghdad on Monday, discussing the judiciary’s work in various fields.
“During the meeting, Sweden’s ambassador reaffirmed the Swedish government’s rejection of Salwan Momika’s actions in insulting the holy Quran, and called for not holding the Kingdom of Sweden and its embassy in Baghdad responsible for this event, and requested insurance to protect the embassy building and staff from any attack,” read a statement from the judiciary.
Zidan stressed the importance of preserving freedom of expression in a way that does not violate freedom of religion, ensuring the Swedish ambassador Baghdad is keen on protecting all diplomatic missions in the country, including that of Sweden.
Both Sweden and EU have expressed their rejection of the burning of the Islamic holy book, but have also deemed the storming of the Swedish embassy “unacceptable”.
The Swedish foreign ministry on Sunday said they were stepping up their border controls in reaction to Momika’s actions, saying that the event has “serious consequences for Sweden’s internal safety and security.”
Authorities in Baghdad have asked Stockholm to extradite the refugee so he can be subjected to prosecution according to Iraqi law.
Comments
Rudaw moderates all comments submitted on our website. We welcome comments which are relevant to the article and encourage further discussion about the issues that matter to you. We also welcome constructive criticism about Rudaw.
To be approved for publication, however, your comments must meet our community guidelines.
We will not tolerate the following: profanity, threats, personal attacks, vulgarity, abuse (such as sexism, racism, homophobia or xenophobia), or commercial or personal promotion.
Comments that do not meet our guidelines will be rejected. Comments are not edited – they are either approved or rejected.
Post a comment