Pope Francis: Allowing the Burning of the Quran is Unacceptable and Condemned

Pope Francis confirmed to the "Al-Ittihad" newspaper that allowing the burning of the Quran is "unacceptable and condemned." In his remarks published by the newspaper today, he expressed his deep anger towards actions such as burning the Quran, stating: "I feel anger and disgust at these actions; any book considered sacred by its followers must be respected in honor of the believers." He added, "Freedom of expression should not be exploited as a pretext to disdain others." This statement follows an incident where a man ripped up a copy of the Quran and set it on fire in front of a mosque in Stockholm on the first day of Eid al-Adha. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which includes 57 countries, called on Sunday for collective measures to prevent the recurrence of Quran desecration incidents, asserting that international law, which clearly prohibits any call to religious hatred, should be enforced.