In the Name of Allah, The Almighty, The Highest
His Eminence Sayyid Ali al-Sistani (May Allah SWT prolong his life) has sent a letter to the United Nations Secretary General, protesting the Holy Qur’an’s desecration in Stockholm, Sweden.
We are sharing this important message of his Eminence with all community members.
In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful
To His Excellency Mr. António Guterres
Secretary-General of the United Nations
Greetings with respect and appreciation,
It has been reported in the media that someone in the Kingdom of Sweden desecrated a copy of the Holy Quran, intending to insult the religion of Islam.
This disgraceful behaviour has occurred more than once in different countries in recent years, but it is noticeable that this time it took place with an official permit from the Swedish police, claiming that it is due to respect for freedom of expression!
However, it is certain that respect for freedom of expression does not justify permitting such a shameful act, which represents a flagrant attack on the sanctity of the beliefs of more than two billion Muslims worldwide and creates an environment conducive to the spread of extremist ideas and wrong practices.
The Supreme Religious Authority condemns what happened and calls on the United Nations to take effective steps to prevent the recurrence of similar incidents, compel countries to reconsider legislation that allows such occurrences, and call for establishing the values of peaceful coexistence between followers of different religions and intellectual backgrounds based on protecting rights and mutual respect for all.
The Office of Sayyid al-Sistani, Najaf
10 Dhu al-Hijjah, 1444 A.H
6/29/2023
