Iraq: Swedish Embassy in Baghdad stormed
Hundreds of protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, in the early hours of Thursday morning, climbing the building’s walls and setting it alight.
Protesters had rallied at the site in anticipation of the planned burning of a Quran in Sweden.
Iraqi riot police fired water cannons to break up the protests while security forces armed with electric batons chased protesters, an AFP photographer on the scene reported.
Shiite cleric supporters respond
The demonstration was called by supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr to protest the second planned Quran burning in Sweden in recent weeks, according to posts in a popular Telegram group connecting the influential cleric and other pro-Sadr media.
The Swedish Foreign Ministry’s press office also told news agency Reuters that Iraqi authorities should be protecting its diplomatic missions and staff.
“The Iraqi authorities are responsible for the protection of diplomatic missions and their staff,” The Swedish Foreign Ministry said in a statement to AFP, adding that attacks on embassies and diplomats “constitute a serious violation of the Vienna Convention”.
Later on Thursday morning, the ministry said in a statement that staff at the embassy were safe.
The Iraqi Foreign Ministry also condemned the storming of the Swedish Embassy. Iraqi authorities have ordered a swift probe into the breach to find the perpetrators and hold them accountable.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Bilstrom labeled the breach “totally unacceptable.”
“It is clear that the Iraq authorities have seriously failed in their responsibility to protect diplomatic missions and personnel,” Bilstrom said in a statement shared on Twitter. Iraq’s charge d’affaires in Stockholm has also been summoned by Swedish authorities to express their dismay after the incident.
Planned Quran burning sparks anger
Swedish news agency TT reported on Wednesday that police granted an application for a public meeting outside the Iraqi embassy in the capital of Stockholm on Thursday.
The application says an individual seeks to set the Quran and the Iraqi flag alight, TT reported.
The Iraqi Prime Minister’s Office said it would cut off ties with Sweden if the Islamic holy book is burned again.