Turkey condemns disrespect for Muslims holy book

ANKARA

Turkey strongly condemned on Monday a disrespect towards the Muslim Holy Book, the Quran, in a recent demonstration organized by an anti-Islamic organization in Kristiansand, Norway.

The extreme right-wing group, Stop the Islamization of Norway (SION), held a protest against Islam on Saturday and attempted to burn a copy of the Quran.

In a statement, the Turkish Foreign Ministry said: "We strongly condemn the disrespect for our holy book, the Holy Quran, in a demonstration organized by an anti-Islamic organization on 16 November 2019 in Kristiansand, Norway."

"We expect that such actions to be prevented and those who are responsible to be brought to justice as soon as possible," the statement added.

The ministry stressed that Turkey is deeply concerned about the recent rise of discrimination against Muslims, hatred against Islam and attacks on mosques in Western European countries.

"Islamophobia and xenophobia becoming ever more alarming recently is an issue that needs to be tackled immediately," it said.

The ministry underlined that racist and extreme right rhetoric and social media messages by certain politicians were inciting these trends against Islam.

"These attacks are not only aimed at Muslims, but also pose a threat to all humanity," the ministry stressed.

"On this occasion, we repeat our call to the international community to work together to completely remove this virus that threatens the entire world," it added.

The ministry also highlighted that it was important that the UN resolution on "Combating terrorism and other acts of violence based on religion or belief" be implemented by all member countries.

"Turkey will continue to lead the international efforts in this direction," it said.

SION members were prevented from burning a copy of the Quran by police. However, the group's leader insulted the scripture held sacred by Muslims by throwing it in a waste container.