In a highly controversial incident that occurred during a demonstration outside the Turkish embassy in The Hague a far-right activist from the Netherlands was seen tearing and trampling on a copy of the Quran provoking anger among the participants of a counter-protest.
Edwin Wagensfeld during the incident of desecration of a copy of the Quran Image Source: Sky News
Although the Dutch government condemned the organization of the demonstration it acknowledged that it did not possess the legal authority to prevent it from taking place.
Edwin Wagensveld the leader of the Dutch branch of the extremist right-wing movement “Pegida” was witnessed by journalists from Agence France-Presse (AFP) tearing apart a copy of the Quran along with two other individuals.
Pegida also known as “Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West” is an anti-immigrant and racist movement that originated in the German city of Dresden in 2014 largely in response to the influx of migrants. The group warns against the “Islamization of the West” and advocates for the expulsion of Muslims from Europe.
The Dutch police closed off the road leading to the embassy where a counter-protest was organized with around fifty participants. Some individuals within the counter-protest threw stones at Wagensveld when he began tearing pages from the Quran.
Approximately twenty police officers equipped with shields and batons, intervened as some tried to chase Wagensveld while leaving the scene.
On Friday morning Dutch Minister of Justice Dilan Yesilgöz-Zegerius, who was born in Turkey described the Quran desecration as “pathetic” but added that the laws of the country allowed for such demonstrations. Nevertheless Wagensveld is now facing legal proceedings due to comments he made during a similar protest in January where he also tore a copy of the Quran outside the parliament.
Similar acts of desecration of the Quran have been reported in several European countries recently. In late July two individuals set fire to a copy of the Quran outside the Swedish parliament, and similar incidents have occurred in Denmark this year.
These protests have sparked anger and condemnation in Muslim-majority countries. Sweden on Thursday raised its terror threat level due to the burning of copies of the Quran within its borders with authorities warning of an ongoing “terrorist threat” in the country.
