Ankara: Turkey condemned the burning of the Quran by a far-right politician near a mosque in Denmark on Friday.
“We condemn in the strongest terms that the hate crime committed in Sweden against our holy book Quran is allowed to be committed again in Copenhagen, Denmark today,” the Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
“The fact that this despicable act, which was carried out in Denmark after Sweden and the Netherlands, was not prevented despite all our warnings, is worrying as it reveals the dangerous dimensions of religious intolerance and hatred in Europe by abusing the so-called freedom environment,” the statement added.
Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right political party Hard Line, burned the Quran in front of a mosque in Copenhagen on Friday, Xinhua news agency reported.
Paludan earlier burned the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm last Saturday which caused Turkey to postpone a trilateral mechanism meeting with Sweden and Finland on their NATO bid.
The Turkish Foreign Ministry on Friday summoned Danish Ambassador to Ankara Danny Annan ahead of the demonstration and asked for the reversal of the permission given to Rasmus Paludan.
The protest involving the Quran is the third of its kind recently.
Ankara summoned the Dutch envoy in Ankara on Tuesday to convey its protest after Edwin Wagensveld, leader of a far-right group Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamisation of the West, tore out pages from a Quran in the Netherlands.
Islamabad: Pakistan has strongly condemned the “abhorrent” act of the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden, stressing that the move hurt the sentiments of the 1.5 billion-strong Muslim community across the globe.
The country’s condemnation came after Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right party Stram Kurs (Hard Line), burned the Holy Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm, Geo News reported.
Turkiye and several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Kuwait, denounced the Quran burning. “Saudi Arabia calls for spreading the values of dialogue, tolerance, and coexistence, and rejects hatred and extremism,” the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement, Geo News reported.
The move has drawn severe criticism from Turkiye as well, with Ankara calling off a visit by Sweden’s defence minister and mentioning that “it’s a racist action, it’s not about freedom of expression”.
In its statement, Pakistan’s Foreign Office said that this senseless and provocative Islamophobic act hurts the religious sensitivities of billions of Muslims around the world, Geo News reported.
Such actions, the ministry said, are not covered under any legitimate expression of the right to freedom of expression or opinion, which carries responsibilities under international human rights law, such as the obligation not to carry out hate speech and incite people to violence.
The ministry called upon the international community to show a common resolve against Islamophobia, xenophobia, intolerance, and incitement to violence on the basis of religion or belief, and work together for promoting inter-faith harmony and peaceful coexistence.
Pakistan’s concerns are being conveyed to the authorities in Sweden, it said, urging them to be mindful of the sentiments of Muslims and take steps to prevent Islamophobic acts, Geo News reported.
Turkey has condemned a demonstration involving the burning of Qur’ans in Sweden on Saturday, further inflaming tensions between the two countries amid Stockholm’s Nato bid.
The protest in Stockholm, which took place under heavy police protection in front of Turkey’s embassy, gathered about 100 people and a crowd of reporters, Agence France-Presse reported.
Far-right politician Rasmus Paludan, who staged the event, gave an hour-long speech against Islam and immigration before setting fire to a copy of the Qur’an.
A day prior, Turkey’s foreign ministry summoned Sweden’s ambassador over the permission granted to Paludan’s protest. It was the second time Sweden’s ambassador to Turkey has been summoned this month, after having had to answer for a 12 January stunt during which a Kurdish group hung an effigy of Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in Stockholm.
Earlier on Saturday, Ankara cancelled a 27 January visit by Sweden’s defence minister, Pål Jonson, intended to be a discussion about Turkey’s refusal to ratify Sweden’s Nato accession.
Turkey’s defence minister, Hulusi Akar, said the meeting was cancelled because it “has lost its significance and meaning”.
Jonson, however, announced the meeting had been postponed after talks with Akar on Friday at the US military base in Ramstein, Germany.
“Our relations with Türkiye are very important to Sweden, and we look forward to continuing the dialogue on common security and defence issues at a later date,” he tweeted on Saturday.
Prior to Paludan’s event on Saturday, Turkey’s foreign minister, Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, called it a “hate crime” that could not be characterised as freedom of expression, and asked Sweden not to allow the “vile act” to take place.
The Stockholm protest was also denounced by İbrahim Kalın, chief adviser to Erdoğan.
“The burning of the Holy Qur’an in Stockholm is a clear crime of hatred and humanity,” Kalın tweeted. “We vehemently condemn this. Allowing this action despite all our warnings is encouraging hate crimes and Islamophobia. The attack on sacred values is not freedom but modern barbarism.”
Sweden’s government has sought to distance itself from the demonstration, with the foreign minister, Tobias Billström, condemning it on Saturday.
“Islamophobic provocations are appalling,” Billström tweeted. “Sweden has a far-reaching freedom of expression, but it does not imply that the Swedish government, or myself, support the opinions expressed.”
Turkey has proved to be an obstacle to Sweden and Finland’s historic application for Nato membership after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which marked a reversal of the Nordic countries’ decades of neutrality. Sweden and Finland have gained the approval of 28 Nato members so far, bar Hungary and Turkey.
In November, Hungary’s president, Viktor Orbán, said his parliament would ratify Nato membership for Sweden and Finland in early 2023. But Turkey is still holding back, demanding the extradition of people in Sweden it claims to have links to the Kurdistan Workers’ party (PKK) – designated as a terrorist group by Turkey, the EU and the US – or to banned cleric Fethullah Gülen.
[ad_2]
#Turkey #condemns #burning #Quran #farright #protest #Sweden
( With inputs from : www.theguardian.com )
SRINAGAR: The Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha has strongly condemned the blasts that have taken place in Narwal, Jammu this morning.
Senior police officials briefed the Lt Governor about the blast and on the state of investigation. He called for urgent steps to identify and take action against those responsible.
“Such dastardly acts highlight the desperation and cowardice of those responsible. Take immediate and firm action. No efforts should be spared to bring the perpetrators to justice,” the Lt Governor told the security officials.
The Lt Governor has offered heartfelt sympathies to those injured. He also announced relief of Rs. 50,000 to those injured in the incident. The Lt Governor said that the administration would ensure best possible treatment and extend every help required by the families.
Jammu, January 21: The Lieutenant Governor, Manoj Sinha has strongly condemned the blasts that have taken place in Narwal, Jammu this morning. Senior police officials briefed the Lt Governor about the blast and on the state of investigation. He called for urgent steps to identify and take action against those responsible.
“Such dastardly acts highlight the desperation and cowardice of those responsible. Take immediate and firm action. No efforts should be spared to bring the perpetrators to justice,” the Lt Governor told the security officials.
The Lt Governor has offered heartfelt sympathies to those injured. He also announced relief of Rs. 50,000 to those injured in the incident. The Lt Governor said that the administration would ensure best possible treatment and extend every help required by the families.(GNS)
