TEHRAN: Following the recent desecration of the Holy Qur’an in Sweden, Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian has called on Europe to effectively confront Islamophobia.
The top Iranian diplomat made the remarks on Tuesday, speaking on the phone with the European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.
The conversation came less than a week after two men stood outside the Swedish capital of Stockholm’s central mosque and burned a copy of the holy book following a go-ahead given to them by a Swedish court.
The repeated and state-authorized instance of sacrilege against the Muslim holy book was made to coincide with the Muslim festivity of Eid al-Adha, which marks the conclusion of the annual Hajj pilgrimage that is partaken by millions of Muslims from across the world.
Iran has repeatedly denounced the act of desecration, summoning Sweden’s chargé d’affaires on one occasion to convey the Islamic Republic’s protest against the heinous insult.
Amir-Abdollahian repeated Tehran’s strong condemnation of the instance of sacrilege, noting how the insult had bruised the sensitivities of Muslims around the world.
Borrell, for his part, said insulting the Noble Qur’an “is not the EU’s position,” adding, “Whatever [act of] insult or [other] measure targeting religions is completely condemned in the eyes of the union.”
