Mardin youth distributes roses in churches after Sweden incident
The opening ceremony of the 1,700-year-old Mor Dimet Church, Mardin, southeastern Turkey, Oct. 11, 2021. (DHA Photo)


A group of young people distributed roses in churches in response to Saturday’s Quran burning anti-Islam propaganda in Sweden.

The young people visited the churches in Mardin, a southeastern Turkish city known for its multireligious and multicultural aspect and gave roses to representatives of different religions.

"As Muslims, we thought about how could we respond to the incident in Sweden yesterday. We decided to follow our Prophet Muhammad. Today, we will visit churches and respond to the incident according to Muslim values. We will distribute roses to them," Ibrahim Halil Yetim, one of the participants in the group, told IHA news agency.

Rasmus Paludan, leader of the Danish far-right Hard Line party, was granted permission by the Swedish government to burn the Quran outside the Turkish Embassy in Stockholm on Saturday.

Following the incident, the Foreign Ministry on Friday summoned Swedish Ambassador to Ankara Staffan Herrstrom, who was told that Türkiye "strongly condemns this provocative act, which is a hate crime. Sweden’s attitude is unacceptable and insults to sacred values ​​cannot be defended under the guise of democratic rights."