Iraq has ordered the expulsion of Sweden’s ambassador and recalled its chargé d’affaires from Stockholm in anger over a protest that had been expected to involve the burning of a Koran in the Swedish capital.
The diplomatic spat came hours after hundreds of demonstrators stormed the Swedish embassy compound in Baghdad early on Thursday, in a show of rage against the anticipated destruction of the Islamic religious text.
A small protest later went ahead outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm. Video footage circulated on social media showed a man stepping on and kicking a copy of the Koran. The footage, which the Financial Times was not immediately able to verify, did not show the Koran being burnt.