IEA condemns burning of Holy Quran in Sweden

Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has condemned the burning of the Holy Quran in Sweden and called on Swedish authorities to “severely punish perpetrators”.

In a statement issued by the ministry of foreign affairs, the IEA said Swedish authorities must “severely punish perpetrators of this act and … prevent such incidents that desecrate Islamic sanctities from occuring”.

The IEA stated: “It is said that the perpetrators plan on repeating this crime, in which case, it will aggravate sensitivities of Muslims across the globe, leading to undesired consequences for all.

“It is responsibility of the Swedish government to take serious steps in preventing such evil by malicious circles,” their statement read.

This comes after clashes broke out in Sweden between police and people angry at plans by a far-right group to burn copies of the Quran.

The violence was sparked by a series of rallies organised by the Danish-Swedish politician Rasmus Paludan who said he has burned a copy of Islam’s holy book and wants to do so again.

Saudi Arabia has condemned what it called the “deliberate abuse of the Holy Quran by some extremists in Sweden, and provocation and incitement against Muslims”.

Sweden’s national police chief, Anders Thornberg, said he had never seen such violent riots following Sunday’s clashes in Norrkoping, which is about 160km south-west of Stockholm, and nearby Linkoping.

The two cities also witnessed riots on Friday, along with the Stockholm suburb of Rinkeby and the western city of Orebro. On Saturday, there was a riot in the southern city of Malmo, BBC reported.