Baghdad: Protesters set fire to Sweden’s embassy in Iraq’s capital Baghdad Early Thursday, an AFP journalist said ahead of plans to burn Qurans in Sweden.
Swedish authorities approved a gathering outside the Iraqi embassy on Thursday stockholmWhere the organizers plan to burn a copy of the Quran as well as the Iraqi flag.
Iraqis are angered by the events in Sweden and Thursday’s protest in Baghdad was organized by supporters of the troubled religious leader Sadr in Moqta,
Some protesters waved copies of the Koran in the air, while others carried pictures of Mohammed al-Sadr, a prominent religious cleric and father of Muqtada Sadr.
“Today we have come together to condemn the burning of the Quran, which is all about love and faith,” protester Hasan Ahmed told AFP. “We demand that the Swedish government and the Iraqi government stop such initiatives.”
“We didn’t wait till morning, we broke in at dawn and opened fire Swedish Embassybefore chanting Moqtada’s name, a young protester in Baghdad told AFP on Thursday.
Sweden’s foreign ministry told AFP that its embassy staff in Baghdad were “safe” after the incident.
The ministry said, “Iraqi authorities are responsible for the safety of diplomatic missions and their staff”, adding that attacks on embassies and diplomats “are a serious violation of the Vienna Convention”.
An AFP photographer said several trucks had arrived to put out the fire at the embassy, where clashes broke out between Iraqi security forces and protesters.
It was not immediately clear whether the embassy was empty or staff had been evacuated at the time of the attack.
Iraq’s foreign ministry condemned the embassy arson and asked security forces to identify those responsible.
“The Iraqi government has instructed the relevant security services to immediately investigate and take all necessary measures to uncover the circumstances of the incident and identify the perpetrators,” the ministry said in a statement.
swedish media reported Salwan MomikaIraqi refugees in Sweden organized the event in Stockholm on Thursday.
Salwan burned pages from a copy of the Quran in front of Stockholm’s largest mosque on June 28 during Eid al-Adha, a holiday celebrated by Muslims around the world.
That incident prompted supporters of Moqtada, an influential religious leader and political dissident in Iraq, to attack the Swedish embassy in Baghdad the next day.
Moqtada has repeatedly mobilized thousands of protesters into the streets.
In the summer of 2022, his supporters invaded the parliament building in Baghdad and held a sit-in for several weeks.
At the time, Muktada was involved in a political controversy over the appointment of a prime minister.
Swedish authorities approved a gathering outside the Iraqi embassy on Thursday stockholmWhere the organizers plan to burn a copy of the Quran as well as the Iraqi flag.
Iraqis are angered by the events in Sweden and Thursday’s protest in Baghdad was organized by supporters of the troubled religious leader Sadr in Moqta,
Some protesters waved copies of the Koran in the air, while others carried pictures of Mohammed al-Sadr, a prominent religious cleric and father of Muqtada Sadr.
“Today we have come together to condemn the burning of the Quran, which is all about love and faith,” protester Hasan Ahmed told AFP. “We demand that the Swedish government and the Iraqi government stop such initiatives.”
“We didn’t wait till morning, we broke in at dawn and opened fire Swedish Embassybefore chanting Moqtada’s name, a young protester in Baghdad told AFP on Thursday.
Sweden’s foreign ministry told AFP that its embassy staff in Baghdad were “safe” after the incident.
The ministry said, “Iraqi authorities are responsible for the safety of diplomatic missions and their staff”, adding that attacks on embassies and diplomats “are a serious violation of the Vienna Convention”.
An AFP photographer said several trucks had arrived to put out the fire at the embassy, where clashes broke out between Iraqi security forces and protesters.
It was not immediately clear whether the embassy was empty or staff had been evacuated at the time of the attack.
Iraq’s foreign ministry condemned the embassy arson and asked security forces to identify those responsible.
“The Iraqi government has instructed the relevant security services to immediately investigate and take all necessary measures to uncover the circumstances of the incident and identify the perpetrators,” the ministry said in a statement.
swedish media reported Salwan MomikaIraqi refugees in Sweden organized the event in Stockholm on Thursday.
Salwan burned pages from a copy of the Quran in front of Stockholm’s largest mosque on June 28 during Eid al-Adha, a holiday celebrated by Muslims around the world.
That incident prompted supporters of Moqtada, an influential religious leader and political dissident in Iraq, to attack the Swedish embassy in Baghdad the next day.
Moqtada has repeatedly mobilized thousands of protesters into the streets.
In the summer of 2022, his supporters invaded the parliament building in Baghdad and held a sit-in for several weeks.
At the time, Muktada was involved in a political controversy over the appointment of a prime minister.