As protests continue against Sweden, OIC to meet in Saudi on Quran burning
Member states are set to discuss measures to be taken against attacks on the Muslim holy book.
The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will hold an extraordinary meeting in Saudi city of Jeddah on Sunday over a Quran-burning demonstration in Sweden, Turkey’s state-run Anadolu News Agency reported on Friday.
The executive committee of the 57-member organization of Muslim countries will discuss what measures can be taken over the attack on the holy scripture, Anadolu reported, citing diplomatic sources. The meeting was called by Saudi Arabia, which currently holds the rotating OIC presidency, the report said.
The meeting comes as protests continue in Iraq and Iran against Sweden, where the government tried to contain outrage by expressing regret and rejection of the act while defending freedom of speech.
Swedish police have launched an investigation into the protest, according to Swedish news outlets. On Wednesday a protester of Iraqi descent, Salwan Momika, burned a copy of the holy book outside of a mosque in the Swedish capital Stockholm. The incident, which took place during the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, drew strong reactions from the Muslim world. Protesters stormed the Swedish Embassy in Iraq as Jordan and Morocco recalled their ambassadors to Stockholm.
