Boris Pistorius, Germany’s Defence Minister, on Sunday cancelled an official visit to Iraq, citing security concerns after the Quran was desecrated in Sweden and Denmark.
“The background for the decision is the current developments in Iraq, where there have been violent riots against the embassy of Sweden and an NGO from Denmark in recent days,” Kevin Huuk, a spokesman for the German ministry, told Bloomberg.
“Further security-related protests and an aggravation of the situation can’t be ruled out at this point in time.”
An emergency meeting of the Organisation of Islamic Co-operation will also be held to discuss the recent incidents in the Nordic countries, Iraq’s Foreign Ministry has said on Saturday.
A date has yet to be provided for the OIC meeting, which is in response to two requests submitted by the ministry and will discuss the “most important collective actions and stances of the member countries”, a statement said.
The incidents in Sweden and Denmark have “provoked the feelings of over a billion Muslims worldwide”, it added.
Protesters stormed and set fire to the Swedish embassy in Baghdad last week, responding to a coming demonstration in Stockholm at which the burning of a Quran was expected. Amid the uproar, Iraq severed diplomatic ties with Sweden and suspended the licence of Swedish telecoms firm Ericsson AB.
The diplomatic rift comes after a similarly provocative act in Denmark, which was described by the Danish government as “shameful”. On Saturday, three caravans in Basra belonging to the Danish Refugee Council, members of which had been working on demining projects in the Iraqi city, were burnt in violent demonstrations.
Iraq said its security forces had foiled an attempt by followers of nationalist cleric Moqtada Al Sadr to storm the Danish embassy.
“The provocative and heinous practices against Islamic sanctities are fuelled by laws that allow such actions under the pretext of freedom of expression and the right to protest, which foster hatred and extremism and threaten social peace and security,” Iraq’s Foreign Ministry said.
The ministry has been trying to avert a diplomatic crisis with European countries where the desecrations have occurred, after Mr Al Sadr called for more protests.
His followers have been at the forefront of demonstrations that have targeted the Swedish embassy and left Iraqi security forces battling to stop protesters entering Baghdad’s Green Zone, which hosts the government and diplomatic missions.
On Saturday, Saudi Arabia expressed its “strong condemnation and dissatisfaction” with a failure to take necessary measures to prevent recurrence of “violations against Islamic sanctities", the kingdom’s Foreign Ministry said.
On Sunday, Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said those desecrating the Quran should face the "most severe punishment". By defending perpetrators, Sweden was gearing up for "war" against Muslims, he added.
His remarks come as Iran-backed parties and armed groups that support the government launched their first protests in Baghdad against the desecrations. While Mr Al Sadr commands a large Shiite militia force, he has often been at loggerheads with Iran and its proxy groups who support clerical rule in Iraq.
The latter groups in Iraq have launched thousands of deadly attacks against Iraqi anti-government protesters and international coalition forces in recent years.
Saturday’s protesters were seen carrying the flags of Asaib Ahl Al Haq, a military-political group designated a terrorist organisation by the United States, as well as pictures of the former commander of Iran's Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani, who was killed by the Americans in 2020.
