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Swedish embassy in Baghdad set on fire by protesters against Quran burning — agency

Reuters, citing a source, reports that none of the embassy employees were injured

Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad AP Photo/Ali Jabar

Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad

© AP Photo/Ali Jabar

MOSCOW, July 20. /TASS/. Protesters against another Quran burning action in Stockholm broke into Sweden’s embassy in Baghdad and set it on fire, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing a source and a witness.

According to the agency no one from among the embassy’s employees were hurt. The embassy did not provide any comments to the agency.

A similar protest demonstration was held in Baghdad on June 30.

The burning of a Quran copy took place during a police-authorized demonstration in downtown Stockholm on June 28. Salwan Momika, a 37-year-old Iraqi immigrant, tore pages from the Quran and set it on fire. On that day, Muslims around the world were celebrating Eid al-Adha, one of Islam’s major religious holidays. The Swedish Foreign Ministry said later that the country’s government condemned the "Islamophobic acts" committed by individuals, which in no way reflected the views of the Swedish authorities.

On July 19, the Stockholm policy authorized another such action in front of Iraq’s embassy.

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