The Egyptian foreign ministry has taken action and summoned Sweden’s envoy in response to protests in Stockholm that desecrated the Quran. On Tuesday, the charge d’affaires at the Swedish embassy in Cairo was informed of Egypt’s complete rejection of the unfortunate incidents where copies of the holy Quran were burnt or desecrated in Sweden, according to a statement from the foreign ministry.
Egypt has openly condemned recent incidents in Stockholm involving the burning and stamping on copies of the Muslim holy text, expressing concerns about the escalating Islamophobia and hate crimes. One such incident involved Salwan Momika, an Iraqi refugee based in Sweden, who burnt pages of the Quran outside Stockholm’s main mosque last month. In a subsequent protest near the Iraqi embassy, he stepped on the Quran but did not burn it. These actions have sparked widespread condemnation in the Muslim world and beyond.
While Swedish authorities allowed the demonstrations on grounds of free speech, they clarified that their permission did not indicate approval of the actions. Momika, who identifies as an atheist, defended his actions in an interview, stating that they aimed to draw attention to discrimination against minority groups in Iraq. He further expressed his intention to continue burning Qurans as long as it remains legally allowed.
Al-Azhar, one of the most prestigious educational institutions in the Muslim world, has called for boycotting Swedish products in response to these incidents. The tensions have extended throughout the region, with Swedish envoys also being summoned in Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. In Iraq, Sweden’s ambassador has been expelled, and Iran has declared that it will not permit a new Swedish ambassador to enter the country following repeated protests at the Swedish embassies in Baghdad and Tehran. The situation has prompted diplomatic challenges and heightened sensitivities in various countries.