Sweden clears burning of ‘racist’ Quran, ‘hate crime’: Cavusoglu

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The permission Sweden has given to burn the Koran is not freedom of speech, Trkiye Foreign Minister Cavusoglu said, adding that racism and hate crimes are not freedom of thought.

Cavusoglu says the so-called protest cannot be called freedom of speech. (AA)

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said he hoped Swedish authorities would not allow a protest that included the burning of the Koran.

“This permission is granted to this person, despite all our warnings. This despicable act will take place around 4:00 p.m. Turkish time (13:00 GMT), I hope that the Swedish authorities will take the necessary measures until then and will not allow this, “he said. Cavusoglu told reporters on Saturday.

Cavusoglu also said the protest could not be called freedom of speech.

Earlier on Saturday, Ankara canceled Swedish Defense Minister Pal Jonson’s upcoming visit to Turkey in response to Sweden’s permission to set fire to the Quran, Islam’s holy book, near the Turkish embassy. in Stockholm.

“We have noted with regret that no action has been taken following these despicable and heinous acts against Turkey and our President (Recep Tayyip Erdogan). Therefore, at this stage, the visit of the Swedish Minister of Defense Jonson to Turkey on January 27 has become useless. . So we canceled the visit,” Turkish National Defense Minister Hulusi Akar told reporters on Friday after a NATO meeting on the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

The decision announced by Akar came after Rasmus Paludan, leader of Denmark’s far-right Stram Kurs (Hard Line) party, was allowed to burn the Koran on Saturday outside the Turkish embassy in Stockholm.

Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said he feared the protest could further delay Turkey’s ratification of Sweden’s NATO bid.

READ MORE: Turkey summons Swedish envoy to get permission to burn Quran in Stockholm

Crime against humanity

Akar said it was unacceptable to keep silent about the incident, adding, “It was necessary to act and take precautions.”

Underlining Turkey’s support for NATO’s open door policy, Akar added: “All we want is the fulfillment of the commitments contained in this memorandum. We expect Sweden and Finland to do their part, their homework.

Türkiye’s presidential spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, also posted on Twitter that the burning of the Holy Quran in Stockholm is a “hate crime and a crime against humanity”.

“Allowing this action despite all our warnings encourages hate crimes and Islamophobia. The attack on sacred values ​​is not freedom, but modern barbarism,” he added.

READ MORE: Danish far-right party leader burns copy of Holy Quran in Sweden

Source: TRTWorld and agencies

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