The Swedish authorities have granted permission for the Jewish holy book, the Torah, to be burned outside the Israeli embassy in Stockholm tomorrow.
The man who filed the request said he wanted to burn the books in response to the Quran-burning outside Stockholm Mosque on Eid al Adha by an Iraqi immigrant.
Stockholm police approved the protest, saying three people would participate in the demonstration outside the Israeli Embassy at 1pm on Saturday.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog has strongly condemned the Swedish authorities, saying: “I unequivocally condemn the permission granted in Sweden to burn holy books. As President of the State of Israel, I condemned the burning of the Quran, which is sacred to Muslims all over the world, and I am now heartbroken that the same fate awaits a Jewish Bible, the eternal book of the Jewish people.”
Israel’s Ambassador to Sweden Ziv Nevo Kulman also said he is shocked and horrified by more permission for public burnings of holy books.
“I utterly condemn the burning of holy books sacred to any religion as an act of hate and disrespect that has nothing to do with freedom of expression,” Kulman wrote on Twitter.
Meanwhile, Israel’s Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau wrote to Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, urging him to stop the desecration.
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“I call on you to do everything possible to prevent this act. Freedom of expression does not mean permitting everything… Any desecration of sacred Jewish items is not freedom, but antisemitism.”
The Torah is the central sacred text of Judaism. It is a collection of the foundational religious teachings and laws of the Jewish people.
The Torah consists of five books known as the Five Books of Moses or the Pentateuch. These books are Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy.
The Torah serves as a guide for Jewish religious and moral life, providing principles for ethical conduct, rituals, and laws governing various aspects of life.
Jewish tradition holds that the Torah was revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai and has been passed down through generations as a sacred text.
Sweden says it allows the desecration of holy books because it has a strong commitment to freedom of speech, which is protected under the Swedish Constitution.
However, the constitution also outlines limitations such as hate speech, incitement to violence, or expressions that may infringe on other fundamental rights or public order.
SOURCE: AA AND 5PILLARS
