Protesters angry at the burning of a copy of the Koran invaded the Swedish embassy in Baghdad on Thursday, causing a fire, the Associated Press (AP) agency reported.
The France-Presse news agency (AFP) indicated that the embassy was set on fire during the demonstration organized by supporters of the Shiite religious leader Moqtada al-Sadr.
Smoke billowed from the Swedish diplomatic mission building as dozens of protesters gathered there, an AFP correspondent said from the roof of a building in the neighborhood where Iraqi riot police were stationed.
In videos seen by the AP, dozens of men can be seen jumping over the fence of the Swedish diplomatic complex and the sound of them trying to break down a door. Another video shows what appears to be a small fire and in other images several people appear to be in an embassy room, with an audible alarm in the background.
The staff of the Swedish representation are “safe”, the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs told AFP.
“We are aware of the situation. Our embassy staff (in Iraq) are safe and the Ministry is in regular contact with them,” he said in an email.
The Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs has already condemned the attack, having “instructed the competent security authorities to carry out an urgent investigation and take the necessary security measures to discover the circumstances of the incident and identify the perpetrators of the act.” and hold them accountable.” consequently “with the law”.
The demonstrations took place after a man planned, under police protection, to burn a copy of the Koran and the Torah, the Jewish holy book, outside the Israeli embassy in Stockholm on Saturday, the AP said.
However, man will have already abandoned that plan.
The right to hold public demonstrations is protected by the Swedish constitution, and blasphemy laws were dropped in the 1970s.
Last month, an Iraqi Christian migrant burned a copy of the Koran in front of a mosque in Stockholm at the start of the Muslim celebration of Eid al-Adha (Feast of Sacrifice), sparking widespread condemnation in the Islamic world.
Source: TSF
