Baghdad: Iran announced on Friday that it would not allow the new Swedish ambassador, due to the repeated desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden, Fars News Agency reported.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian told state television, “The Swedish ambassador’s term in Tehran has ended and, according to the president’s order, until the Swedish government takes a serious action over the desecration of the Holy Qur’an, we will not accept the new Swedish ambassador and the Iranian ambassador will not be sent to Sweden.”
The announcement came after an evening protests in the capital, Tehran, which saw hundreds of protestors gather outside the Swedish embassy.
The protests came amid rising tensions between Stockholm and Islamic countries over the burning of pages from the Quran by an Iraqi refugee in Sweden outside the main mosque in Stockholm on June 28.
In the most recent such incident on Thursday, refugee Selwan Momica trampled on the Holy Quran but did not burn it. His action provoked new condemnations throughout the Islamic world.
Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Jordan and the UAE had summoned the ambassadors of Sweden and handed them protest notes denouncing and demanding an end to the assault on the sanctities of Muslims, while the Islamic anger continued around the world and several angry protests took place condemning the insult to the Holy Quran.
