Iraqi protesters torch Swedish embassy in Baghdad ahead of planned Holy Quran burning in Stockholm

Hundreds of protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in central Baghdad in the early hours of Thursday morning, scaling its walls and setting it on fire in protest against the expected burning of a Holy Quran in Sweden.

All Baghdad embassy staff were safe, the Swedish foreign ministry press office said in a statement, condemning the attack and highlighting the need for Iraqi authorities to protect diplomatic missions. The ministry did not immediately reply to a request for further detail.

Thursday's demonstration was called by supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr to protest the second planned Holy Quran burning in Sweden in weeks, according to posts in a popular Telegram group linked the influential cleric and other pro-Sadr media.

Sadr, one of Iraq's most powerful figures, commands hundreds of thousands of followers whom he has at times called to the streets, including last summer when they occupied Baghdad's heavily-fortified Green Zone and engaged in deadly clashes.

Swedish police on Wednesday granted an application for a public meeting outside the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm on Thursday, the police permit showed. Police said in the permit two people were expected to participate.

Swedish news agency TT reported that the two planned to burn the Holy Quran and the Iraqi flag at the public meeting, and included a man who set a Holy Quran on fire outside a Stockholm mosque in June.

Swedish police denied several applications earlier this year for protests that were set to include burning the Holy Quran, citing security concerns. Courts have since overturned the police's decisions, saying such acts are protected by the country's far-reaching freedom of speech laws.

Reuters