Published: 11:33, September 24, 2023 | Updated: 11:43, September 24, 2023
Türkiye condemns ‘attacks’ against Quran in Netherlands
By Xinhua

A placard against Swedish-Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan (left) Edwin Wagensveld (right), a Dutch far-right leader of an anti-Islam group, is seen on razor wire fencing as demonstrators gather outside the Swedish Embassy in Jakarta on Jan 30, 2023, as they protest against the burning of the Quran in Sweden. Protests  erupted across the Muslim world after Swedish-Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan set fire to a copy of the Koran in Stockholm, which was followed by Edwin Wagensveld, Dutch leader of anti-Islam group Pegida, tearing pages out of the Quran in The Hague. (PHOTO /AFP)

ANKARA - Türkiye condemned the "provocative attacks" on the Quran outside embassies of Muslim countries, including the Turkish embassy, in the Netherlands, the country's Foreign Ministry said Saturday.

"We condemn the spread of these provocative attacks, which aim to humiliate our religion and its believers, in European countries where they are tolerated, and these acts of hatred are allowed under the guise of freedom of expression," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry called on the Dutch authorities to take necessary action against the perpetrator of the incident and to take precautions to prevent these incidents from recurring

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Effective measures must now be taken by the countries, where the "attacks" take place, against these provocations, which are recognized by the United Nations as religious hatred and a violation of international law, the statement said.

The ministry called on the Dutch authorities to take necessary action against the perpetrator of the incident and to take precautions to prevent these incidents from recurring.

"Türkiye will continue its fight against this sick and hate-based mentality with determination on every platform," it said.

Edwin Wagensveld, leader of the Islamophobic organization, Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West (PEGIDA), tore Islam's holy book Quran in the Netherlands on Saturday, the semi-official Anadolu Agency reported.

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In his protests throughout the day in the city of The Hague, Wagensveld tore the Quran in front of the Turkish embassy as well as the embassies of Pakistan and Indonesia, according to Anadolu.

He had previously been involved in several demonstrations of tearing the Quran, the agency said.