After an alleged violation of the Koran in Denmark, hundreds of people protested again, some violently, in the Iraqi capital Baghdad. Supporters of influential Shiite leader Moktada Sadr attempted to break into the city’s so-called Green Zone, where government and parliament buildings and embassies are located, in the early hours of Saturday morning. Security forces pushed back the demonstrators.
A video appeared earlier on the Facebook page of a far-right Danish organization in which a man appeared to be burning a copy of the Quran and an Iraqi flag. According to a representative of the Iraqi interior ministry, the protesters in Baghdad apparently wanted to storm the Danish embassy. On the night of Thursday, protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Stockholm after the Koran was violated and set it partly on fire.
“Yes to the Quran”
Hundreds of people, mostly young men, gathered in central Tahrir Square late Friday night after the video was released from Denmark. They chanted slogans such as ‘Yes to the Quran’ and some held up pictures of Shiite leader Sadr.
The protesters later attempted to cross a bridge into the Green Zone that had been blocked by Iraqi security forces. Then there were clashes. However, according to the Interior Ministry, it was possible to dissolve the meeting before dawn.
“Desecration” condemned but protection for message
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry on Saturday morning condemned the “desecration of the Holy Quran and the Iraqi flag”. At the same time, however, it ensured the protection of the embassy. The country “will not allow what happened to the Embassy of the Kingdom of Sweden to be repeated.” In recent days, both Sweden and the United States have criticized Baghdad for the inadequate protection of the Swedish embassy.
Source: Krone
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