STOCKHOLM

A Syrian Muslim who obtained permission from the Swedish police to burn the Torah and the Bible in front of the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm chose not to burn the sacred books in response to the provocations of burning the copy of the Holy Quran.

Ahmet Allus on Saturday told journalists in front of the embassy that he obtained permission to perform this act in order to draw attention to the fact that no sacred book should be burned.

“I am a Muslim, and I cannot burn sacred and religious books,” he said.

Referring to the provocations of burning the copy of the Quran under police protection in Sweden, Allus said: “There is a difference between freedom of expression and insulting ethnic groups. Burning the Quran and other religious books should be considered a hate crime. I obtained permission from the police for the act of burning the Torah and the Bible to draw attention to this. I have absolutely no intention of burning any religious book.”

Last month, a person identified as Salwan Momika burned a copy of the Quran under police protection in front of the Stockholm Mosque in Sweden.

His provocative act was timed to coincide with Eid al-Adha, one of the major Islamic religious festivals celebrated by Muslims worldwide.

It elicited widespread condemnations from across the Islamic world, including Türkiye, Jordan, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Senegal, Morocco, and Mauritania.

In January, a far-right politician also set fire to a copy of the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Sweden.