STOCKHOLM: Swedish police have granted a permit for a protest outside parliament on Monday in which the organizers plan to burn the Qur’an, according to local media.
The protesters told media they wanted to see the Muslim holy book banned in Sweden.
“I will burn it many times, until you ban it,” organizer Salwan Najem told Expressen newspaper.
Najem had joined Iraqi refugee Salwan Momika at two previous such protests in Stockholm — outside the city’s main mosque and later outside Iraq’s embassy.
The protest was scheduled for 1:00 p.m. (1100 GMT) on Monday, according to the police permit.
Sweden has seen its diplomatic relations with several Middle Eastern nations strained over previous protests involving Qur’an desecrations.
AFP requested a copy of the application in addition to the permit from police, but did not immediately get a response.
Swedish police have previously stressed they only grant permits for people to hold public gatherings and not for the activities conducted during the events.
In late June, Momika, 37, set pages of the Qur’an alight outside Stockholm’s main mosque.
A month later, he staged a similar protest outside the Iraqi embassy, stomping on the Qur'an but leaving before burning it.
Both incidents led to widespread outrage and condemnations.
Last week, Sweden ordered 15 government bodies including the armed forces, several law enforcement agencies and the tax office to strengthen anti-terrorism efforts.
On Sunday, neighboring Denmark said it would explore legal means of stopping protests involving the burning of holy texts, citing security concerns following backlash over incidents that saw the Qur'an desecrated in the country.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said a similar process was already underway.
Swedish and Danish envoys have been summoned in a slew of Middle Eastern nations.
Saudi Arabia and Iraq have called for a meeting, expected to be held on Monday, of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) to address Qur'an desecrations in both Sweden and Denmark.
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said Monday he had been in contact with several of his counterparts among the 57 member states of the organization ahead of the meeting.
In a statement, Billstrom explained that he had informed them about the process for granting permits for public gatherings in Sweden, and that police made such decisions independently.
“I have also reiterated that the government is very clear in its rejection of the Islamophobic acts carried out by individuals at demonstrations in Sweden,” Billstrom said.
Sweden police grant permit for ‘Qur’an burning protest’
https://arab.news/rpzru
Sweden police grant permit for ‘Qur’an burning protest’
- The protesters told media they wanted to see the Muslim holy book banned in Sweden
- The protest was scheduled for 1:00 p.m. (1100 GMT) on Monday, according to the police permit
Trump Maritime Action Plan eyes levies on China goods to resurrect US shipbuilding
- US shipbuilding has shrunk since World War II and now severely lags China and other nations
- Endorsing the plan, Republican Senator Todd Young said: “It’s time to make American ships again”
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration on Friday released its plan to rebuild US shipbuilding and other maritime businesses, paid for in part by port fees on cargo delivered to the United States on ships made in China — levies the US and China agreed to pause for one year.
The Maritime Action Plan offers a road map for the revival of US shipbuilding, which has shrunk since World War Two and now severely lags China and other nations.
Coming in at more than 30 pages, the plan calls for establishing maritime prosperity zones to bolster investment, reforming workforce training and education, expanding the fleet of US-built and US-flagged commercial ships, establishing a dedicated funding stream through a Maritime Security Trust Fund and reducing regulations.
The Trump administration early last year announced plans to levy fees on China-linked ships to loosen the country’s grip on the global maritime industry and help pay for a US shipbuilding renaissance. The so-called Section 301 penalties followed a US probe that concluded China uses unfair policies and practices to dominate global shipping.
The fees, which sparked intense pushback from the global shipping industry and intensified tensions between the world’s two largest economies, hit on October 14 and were expected to generate an estimated $3.2 billion annually from Chinese-built vessels sailing to US ports.
But China retaliated with its own port fees on US-linked ships and the tit-for-tat fees disrupted global shipping. Soon after, the two sides struck a deal to put the levies on hold for 12 months.
On Friday, Shipyard owners, investors and the bipartisan sponsors of the Shipbuilding and Harbor Infrastructure for Prosperity and Security (SHIPS) for America Act welcomed President Donald Trump’s maritime plan, which landed months later than hoped.
US Senator Todd Young, a Republican from Indiana, said there is substantial overlap between Trump’s vision and the plan in that proposed law, which he reintroduced last year with Democratic Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona and other lawmakers.
Importantly, the SHIPS Act would establish a Maritime Security Trust Fund to reinvest port fee proceeds into maritime security and infrastructure projects such as shipyard revitalization. It has rare backing from both Democratic and Republican lawmakers in Washington, but has not made swift progress.
“The announcement today should serve as a wake-up call for Congress to act quickly on this bill in order to provide the legal authorities and resources necessary to make this plan a reality,” Young said. “It’s time to make American ships again.”
