UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said that the act of burning the Holy Quran in Sweden on Saturday by the leader of a far-right party was “another symbol of growing against many religions that must be condemned.
Also read: Swedish prime minister condemns desecration of Holy Quran in Stockholm
The incident has already drawn worldwide condemnation with nations across the globe calling it a senseless and provocative Islamophobic act that hurts the religious sensitivities of over 1.5 billion Muslims around the world.
Responding to a question at the regular noon briefing at United Nations Headquarters in New York on Monday, Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said that the UN chief “fully supports the statement made by Mr. Miguel Moratinos, the head of the Alliance of Civilizations, who firmly condemned this act.”
Also read: Muslim world erupts in anger over Quran desecration in Sweden
In his statement on Friday, Moratinos called “vile” the desecration of the Holy Quran in Sweden, saying, “It is disrespectful and insulting to the adherents of Islam and should not be conflated with freedom of expression.”
On Monday, the secretary-general said that the act was “yet another symbol of the growing hate that we’ve been seeing against many religions, whether it’s Islam or Judaism and others, and such acts should be clearly condemned, and we do so.”
Also read: Pakistan strongly condemns desecration of Holy Quran in Sweden
