Assistant Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs on European Affairs Ihab Nasr summoned the Swedish chargé d’affaires to affirm Egypt’s condemnation of the “regretful and repeated incidents of burning and abuse of Noble Quran copies in Sweden,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.

Egypt has previously warned of the dangerous repercussions of these repeated and unacceptable incidents, the ministry cited Nasr as saying during the meeting with the Swedish diplomat.

Egypt has also warned that such incidents fuel Islamophobia, incite hate speech and extremism and facilitate the breakdown of civilized communication between the world’s peoples and societies, Nasr added.

Nasr also stressed Egypt’s rejection of all forms of contempt for all religions or offence to their followers. Such practices, he said, cannot be considered freedom of expression, which must necessarily avoid desecrating what others hold sacred.

The Egyptian diplomat called for authorities in Sweden and other countries that have recently seen similar incidents to prevent their recurrence and hold the perpetrators accountable.

These efforts seek to preserve a culture of tolerance and principles of peaceful coexistence, dialogue and civility worldwide, Nasr stated.

Egypt has condemned repeated Quran burnings in Sweden and Denmark over the past two months, including the latest two incidents in Sweden carried out by an Iraqi migrant.

The incidents have led several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iraq to summon the Swedish chargé d’affaires in their countries and led Baghdad to expel the Swedish ambassador.