Ahead of the Muslim three-day Eid al-Adha holiday, Swedish police on Wednesday Protestors to burn Quran as part of protests outside Stockholm’s main mosque.
The decision comes two weeks after a Swedish appeals court overturned a police ban on Quran burning after the Muslim holy book was torched outside Turkey’s embassy in January, leading to weeks of protests, calls for a boycott of Swedish goods. and Sweden’s NATO membership was put on hold. bid.
Police had refused permission to burn Qurans in Stockholm, saying the protests had made Sweden a “high priority target for attacks”.
The January incident was strongly condemned by many Islamic countries, especially Turkey, forcing it to delay Sweden’s NATO bid because of Stockholm’s failure to crack down on Kurdish groups it considered “terrorist”. .
Sweden’s political leaders have criticized the Koran burning but defended the right to freedom of expression.
The move reflects the country’s growing leanings towards far-right groups and the emergence of neo-Nazi organizations in recent years, among which is the Sweden Democrats – which became the second largest party in the Swedish parliament after last year’s elections.
It is also the largest party in the right-wing ruling bloc, although it is not recognized as part of the government.