Saudi Foreign Ministry Summons Swedish Ambassador

Saudi Arabia has summoned the Swedish ambassador to protest the desecration of the Holy Quran in Stockholm. After the Swedish police issued a permit last Wednesday to burn the Quran outside a mosque in Stockholm, on the first day of the Eid al-Adha sacrifice, an extremist named Salvan Momika tore up and burned a copy of the Holy Quran in the central mosque of this city. Following this action, which caused a wave of anger and disgust in the Islamic world, the Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation announced an emergency meeting of this organization following the insult of the Holy Quran.

Saudi Arabia's state media reported on Monday that the Saudi Foreign Ministry has summoned the Swedish ambassador to ask Sweden to stop all actions that are in direct conflict with international efforts to promote the values of tolerance, moderation and non-extremism and to call for the mutual respect necessary for human relations and governments.

The act of burning the Koran by Momika caused widespread anger in Islamic countries. The authorities and peoples of Iraq, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, the Maghreb and several other Arab countries also expressed their protest, making harsh statements and calling the Swedish ambassadors. The Organization for Islamic Cooperation, based in Saudi Arabia , called for collective action to prevent the burning of the Koran in the future at an extraordinary meeting at its headquarters in Jeddah.