Muslim countries slam Sweden for Quran burning in Stockholm

Governments of several Muslim countries reacted to the Quran burning earlier this week in Stockholm, which also sparked a protest in Baghdad Thursday. 

Jordan summoned on Thursday the Swedish ambassador in Amman over the burning and informed her of Jordan's strong protest, the Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates said in a statement.

Dozens of Iraqis gathered on Thursday in front of the Swedish embassy in Baghdad to protest at the burning of a Quran in Sweden, according to a Reuters witness.

Some of the protesters burned a rainbow-colored flag representing the LGBT community and chanted "yes, yes to the Quran."

Also on Thursday, the UAE summoned the Swedish ambassador to protest against the burning a copy of the Quran, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan slammed Sweden over the burning of a Quran and said Turkey would never bow down to a policy of provocation or threat.

"We will teach the arrogant Western people that it is not freedom of expression to insult the sacred values of Muslims," he told party members on the Muslim holiday of Eid Al-Adha.

Erdogan said Turkey would show the possible strongest reaction to what he called the vile protest.

What happened at the Quran burning?

Swedish police had granted permission for the anti-Quran protest to take place. But after the burning, police charged the man who carried it out with agitation against an ethnic or national group.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan condemned the protest and said it was unacceptable to allow anti-Islam protests in the name of freedom of expression.

A series of protests in Sweden against Islam and for Kurdish rights have heightened tensions with Turkey, whose backing Sweden needs to gain entry to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).