AhlulBayt News Agency: The secretary-general of the United Nations, Mr. Antonio Guterres, announced that he received the letter of the supreme religious authority; Sayed Ali al-Husseini al-Sistani, regarding the crime of burning the Holy Quran in Sweden, stressing his high appreciation for the efforts of the supreme authority.
The spokesman of the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ahmed Al-Sahaf, said in a statement on Saturday that "deputy prime minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, received on Friday evening, corresponding to June 30, 2023, a phone call from the secretary-general of the United Nations Antonio Guterres, and during the call discussed the abuse of the Holy Quran by an Iraqi resident in the kingdom of Sweden, on Wednesday, corresponding to June 28, 2023".
According to the statement, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed that he "followed this event, as well as the reactions in Iraq and the Islamic world," expressing his "condemnation of this heinous act."
Guterres stressed the " need to work to confront the phenomenon of Islamophobia," adding: "I have received the letter of the Supreme Authority; Sayed Ali al-Sistani, and I highly appreciate the efforts of His Eminence, and I will prepare a response letter in this regard."
The statement continued: "In conclusion, Fouad Hussein thanked the secretary-general of the United Nations for his position, which was expressed by the assistant secretary-general for ancient civilizations affairs in the statement issued by him, and his great interest in the message of Sayed. Ali Sistani, stressing that everyone is working and seeking to achieve security, peace, peaceful coexistence and the fight against extremist ideas."
And it is noteworthy to mention that Sayed Ali al-Sistani condemned the incident of burning the Holy Quran that occurred in Sweden, calling on the United Nations to take effective steps to prevent its recurrence.
Below is the text of the letter of the Office of the Supreme Religious Authority; Sayed. Ali al-Sistani, to the Secretary-General of the United Nations regarding the attack on a copy of the Holy Quran with a license from the Swedish police:
In the name of God, the Most Compassionate, Most Merciful
His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres, distinguished Secretary-General of the United Nations
Greetings with respect and appreciation
After: the media reported that someone in the kingdom of Sweden attacked a copy of the Holy Quran and burned some of its papers, in order to offend the true Islamic religion.
This disgraceful act has happened more than once in different countries in recent years, but it is noteworthy that this time it was signed with an official license from the Swedish police, claiming that it was a requirement to respect freedom of expression!
However, it is certain that respect for freedom of expression does not justify licensing such a shameful act, which represents a flagrant attack on the sanctities of more than two billion Muslims in the world, and leads to creating an environment conducive to the spread of extremist ideas and wrong practices.
The Supreme Religious Authority, expressing its condemnation of what happened, calls on the United Nations to take effective steps to prevent the recurrence of such incidents and push states to reconsider the legislation that allows them to occur, and calls for the establishment of the values of peaceful coexistence between followers of different religions and intellectual approaches based on the care of rights and mutual respect between all.
Al-Najaf Al-Ashraf
10/12/1444 AH corresponding to 29/06/2023
/129
The spokesman of the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Ahmed Al-Sahaf, said in a statement on Saturday that "deputy prime minister and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein, received on Friday evening, corresponding to June 30, 2023, a phone call from the secretary-general of the United Nations Antonio Guterres, and during the call discussed the abuse of the Holy Quran by an Iraqi resident in the kingdom of Sweden, on Wednesday, corresponding to June 28, 2023".
According to the statement, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stressed that he "followed this event, as well as the reactions in Iraq and the Islamic world," expressing his "condemnation of this heinous act."
Guterres stressed the " need to work to confront the phenomenon of Islamophobia," adding: "I have received the letter of the Supreme Authority; Sayed Ali al-Sistani, and I highly appreciate the efforts of His Eminence, and I will prepare a response letter in this regard."
The statement continued: "In conclusion, Fouad Hussein thanked the secretary-general of the United Nations for his position, which was expressed by the assistant secretary-general for ancient civilizations affairs in the statement issued by him, and his great interest in the message of Sayed. Ali Sistani, stressing that everyone is working and seeking to achieve security, peace, peaceful coexistence and the fight against extremist ideas."
And it is noteworthy to mention that Sayed Ali al-Sistani condemned the incident of burning the Holy Quran that occurred in Sweden, calling on the United Nations to take effective steps to prevent its recurrence.
Below is the text of the letter of the Office of the Supreme Religious Authority; Sayed. Ali al-Sistani, to the Secretary-General of the United Nations regarding the attack on a copy of the Holy Quran with a license from the Swedish police:
In the name of God, the Most Compassionate, Most Merciful
His Excellency Mr. Antonio Guterres, distinguished Secretary-General of the United Nations
Greetings with respect and appreciation
After: the media reported that someone in the kingdom of Sweden attacked a copy of the Holy Quran and burned some of its papers, in order to offend the true Islamic religion.
This disgraceful act has happened more than once in different countries in recent years, but it is noteworthy that this time it was signed with an official license from the Swedish police, claiming that it was a requirement to respect freedom of expression!
However, it is certain that respect for freedom of expression does not justify licensing such a shameful act, which represents a flagrant attack on the sanctities of more than two billion Muslims in the world, and leads to creating an environment conducive to the spread of extremist ideas and wrong practices.
The Supreme Religious Authority, expressing its condemnation of what happened, calls on the United Nations to take effective steps to prevent the recurrence of such incidents and push states to reconsider the legislation that allows them to occur, and calls for the establishment of the values of peaceful coexistence between followers of different religions and intellectual approaches based on the care of rights and mutual respect between all.
Al-Najaf Al-Ashraf
10/12/1444 AH corresponding to 29/06/2023
/129
