Rosalind Evans
In Baghdad, the capital of Iraq, Iraqi security personnel dispersed scores of protesters who breached the main entrance of the Swedish embassy. Authorizing yet another intended Quran-burning event by law enforcement in Stockholm prompted this reaction.
Social media footage depicted a considerable gathering of protesters within the boundaries of the Swedish embassy, along with black smoke and flames erupting from the premises.
Armed with electric batons, security forces pursued the protesters. They utilized water cannons to scatter them and extinguish the flames, according to a source within the security apparatus, as reported by CNN.
While documenting the protests, three photojournalists affiliated with international news agencies were detained, stated Ziyad Al-Ajili, the chief of the Iraq-based Journalistic Freedoms Observatory (JFO), in his conversation with CNN on Thursday.
He also noted that another journalist was assaulted by security personnel, who also destroyed his camera.
Eyewitness accounts shared with CNN suggest that after setting a part of the embassy alight, the protesters withdrew from the embassy perimeter, having voiced their dissent against the proposed desecration of the sacred Muslim scripture.
Salwan Momika, an Iraqi residing in Sweden who previously sparked global outrage by burning a copy of the Quran outside a Stockholm mosque last month, organized a similar protest outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm later on Thursday.
An official spokesperson for the Stockholm police stated that a “sort of document” was set ablaze during Thursday’s protest, which lasted about 45 minutes. However, it was uncertain whether the burned document was a Quran. The police will determine whether an investigation is warranted, they added.
The spokesperson further clarified that while they grant permits for public gatherings, they do not sanction specific activities during such events, as reported by AFP.
Swedish and Iraqi authorities locked horns over the protests. Baghdad warned Stockholm of a potential rupture in diplomatic relations due to the state-sanctioned demonstrations that involved Quran burning.
The office of the Iraqi prime minister interpreted the permit granted under the guise of freedom of expression as an act of provocation and in violation of international agreements, which demand respect for religious beliefs.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry criticized the attack on the Swedish embassy as an alarming continuation of assaults on diplomatic missions.
The Iraqi government convened an emergency meeting on Thursday to hand over the detained individuals from Baghdad to the judicial authorities. It also stated that any security official found negligent would be scrutinized and subjected to suitable legal actions.
Prominent Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada al Sadr, whose followers instigated the Swedish embassy protests, accused Sweden of disrespecting Islam and Iraq by permitting the burning of the Iraqi flag.
The Swedish authorities responded by strongly condemning the Baghdad protests, describing the protesters’ actions as “entirely unacceptable.”
On Thursday, Sweden’s Foreign Minister, Tobias Billström, summoned the charge d’affaires of Iraq in Stockholm. Later, Iraq requested the recall of its chargé d’affaires from the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm and asked the Swedish ambassador in Baghdad to leave the country, an Iraqi government spokesperson disclosed on Thursday.
Despite the ongoing protests outside the embassy, all the staff of Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad are safe, as confirmed by the foreign ministry’s press office via an email to CNN.
The press office also condemned attacks on diplomatic personnel and international organization staff members, emphasizing that such attacks violate the Vienna Convention severely. They further stressed the responsibility of Iraqi authorities to ensure the protection of diplomatic missions and their staff.
At the end of June, a man was captured in images burning a copy of the Quran outside a mosque in Stockholm. Apart from his translator, he was the lone individual present at the protest, which took place during Eid-al-Adha, a pivotal date in the Islamic calendar.
This unfolding diplomatic crisis between Iraq and Sweden spotlights the delicate balance between freedom of expression and respect for religious sentiments. The Swedish government’s handling of the situation will be under intense scrutiny in Iraq and other Muslim-majority countries worldwide. The implications of these incidents may reach beyond the immediate conflict, potentially influencing future diplomatic relations and the global discourse on freedom of speech and religious tolerance.
