Swedish police have received several permit applications for the burning of religious texts in the country next week, the country's prime minister said Thursday, voicing fears this may escalate tensions further with the Muslim world.
In his first public comments since the start of the Quran burning crisis that has severely strained Stockholm’s ties with Muslim-majority nations, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told Swedish news agency TT he was "extremely concerned” about a new wave of desecrations.
"It’s the police that make those decisions, not me. If they (permits) are granted, we face a number of days with the obvious risk of serious things happening,” Kristersson told TT.
A recent string of public Quran desecrations by a handful of anti-Muslim extremists in Sweden – and more recently in neighboring Denmark – has sparked demonstrations in Muslim countries.
Sweden does not have a law prohibiting the burning or desecration of religious texts and characterizes the provocations as their constitutional right of "freedom of speech." Police generally give permission based on whether they believe a public gathering can be held without major disruptions or risks to public safety.
The Swedish Security Service said Wednesday that Sweden's image among Muslim-majority nations and its security situation has naturally deteriorated after the recent Quran-burning incidents, and that it could face threats.
Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom and security service representatives appeared before the Swedish parliament’s foreign affairs committee Thursday to discuss the Quran burning crisis, at the request of the opposition Social Democratic Party.
After the meeting, Billstrom told TT that the situation was serious but that there was no "quick fix” to cool down the anti-Swedish backlash in the Muslim world.
"Our primary and most important task is to protect Swedish interests and the safety of Swedes both here and abroad,” Billstrom was quoted by TT. "We should take the developments that are now underway very seriously; everyone in our country should do so.”
Kristersson said his government has created a new task force among security agencies to come up with measures to combat terrorism and violent extremism that could occur in response to the Quran-burning incidents.
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has called an emergency remote meeting on July 31 at the ministerial level to discuss the consistent police-protected desecration of the Quran in Sweden and Denmark.
