News - Yemen: The Joint Meeting Parties condemned in the strongest terms the burning of copies of the holy Qur’an by extremists and racists in Sweden, in a severe offense against Muslims and a dangerous phenomenon to allow them to be allowed in any of the countries and governments.

The joint parties affirmed in a statement, Tuesday, that such shameful behavior requires a broad rejection by Arab and Islamic peoples to assert that they adhere to the Holy Qur’an as a nation that follows its approach.

The statement called on the Swedish government to hold these extremists accountable and punish them for their act, and to take all necessary measures to ensure that such a disgraceful act is not repeated.

Police and counter-protesters in Sweden have been engaged in fierce clashes over the past few days.

The violence erupted on Thursday on the sidelines of a rally in central Sweden’s Muslim-dominated area by the anti-immigration and anti-Muslim party led by Danish-Swedish politician, Rasmus Paludan.

The far-right leader, accompanied by police, reportedly put a copy of the holy book on the floor and tried to burn it.

The blasphemous act prompted counter-protesters, around 200 people by local media’s estimate, to break into the rally and clash with the members of the far-right party and Swedish police.

The counter-protesters urged police not to allow Paludan to commit the sacrilegious act but the pleas were conveniently ignored, sparking violent clashes and stone-pelting.

Apart from Norrkoping and Linkoping, unrest and violent clashes have been reported in Stockholm, Orebro, Landskrona, and Malmo as well, after police ignored calls to stop the far-right demonstration.

The violent clashes came after the Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson came out in support of the far-right group, making remarks that have been deemed provocative.

“In Sweden, people are allowed to express their opinions, whether they are in good or bad taste, that is part of our democracy. No matter what you think, you must never resort to violence. We will never accept it,” he was quoted as saying on Thursday.