COPENHAGEN – Iraq and some other Muslim-majority countries have strongly condemned the burning of a Quran on Monday by a group called “Danish Patriots” outside the Iraqi embassy in Copenhagen.
The far-right group livestreamed a similar act on Facebook on Friday.
Nearly 1,000 demonstrators in Baghdad tried to reach the Danish embassy after that incident.
Last week, crowds set fire to Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad after the planned burning of a Quran in Stockholm.
In Monday’s incident in Denmark, two anti-Islam protesters stamped on the holy book and set it alight in a tin foil tray next to an Iraqi flag on the ground.
Iraq’s foreign ministry said such acts allowed “the virus of extremism and hate” to pose “a real threat to the peaceful coexistence of societies”.
Muslims consider the Quran to be the word of God and view any intentional damage or show of disrespect towards it as deeply offensive.
The latest desecration of the book in the Danish capital also triggered a rally by thousands of protesters in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, who voiced anger at both Denmark and Sweden for allowing such acts. (BBC)
