“We will teach arrogant Westerners that insulting Muslims is not a matter of freedom of expression,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in a televised address, adding that he condemns the incident “in the strongest terms”.
An Iraqi burned a copy of the Quran outside the main mosque in Stockholm, Sweden, on Wednesday after Swedish police cleared the mini-rally which coincided with the start of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.
A strong speech from Erdogan
“We will show our reaction in the strongest possible way, until a decisive victory is won against terrorist organizations and Islamophobia.” Erdogan’s tough speech came a week before Turkey’s and Sweden’s top diplomats are due to meet in Brussels to discuss Stockholm’s bid for NATO membership.
Turkey and fellow NATO member Hungary are delaying ratification of the bid, which has been endorsed by all other members of the US-led defense alliance. Western officials hoped to formally welcome Sweden into the Union ahead of the NATO summit to be held in Lithuania on July 11-12.
In their written decision authorizing the demonstration, the Stockholm police considered that the safety risks associated with the fire “were not of a nature which could justify, under current laws, a decision to reject the application. “.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who extended his two-decade-long presidential term until 2028 following a tough election last month, said Swedish authorities bear full responsibility for the incident. “Those who commit this crime as well as those who allow it under the guise of freedom of opinion, those who tolerate this despicable act will not be able to achieve their ambitions,” he said.