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Arab World

Iraq Asks Sweden to Hand Over Perpetrator Who Burnt Copy of The Quran

Supporters of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr raises of the Quran, the Muslims' holy book, during a demonstration in front of the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in response to the burning of Quran in Sweden, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
Supporters of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr raises of the Quran, the Muslims' holy book, during a demonstration in front of the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in response to the burning of Quran in Sweden, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
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Iraq Asks Sweden to Hand Over Perpetrator Who Burnt Copy of The Quran

Supporters of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr raises of the Quran, the Muslims' holy book, during a demonstration in front of the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in response to the burning of Quran in Sweden, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)
Supporters of the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr raises of the Quran, the Muslims' holy book, during a demonstration in front of the Swedish embassy in Baghdad in response to the burning of Quran in Sweden, Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, June 30, 2023. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)

Iraq will be taking several measures against the Iraqi refugee who burnt a copy of the Quran outside a mosque in Stockholm, including asking the Swedish authorities to hand him over for trial, the Iraqi Consul General in Jeddah, Mohammad al-Naqshbandi, told Asharq Al-Awsat on Sunday.

On the first day of Eid al-Adha, an Iraqi refugee stomped on and burnt pages of the Islamic holy book outside a mosque in Stockholm . Swedish authorities authorized the protest under freedom of expression and assembly.

Naqshbandi, Iraq's delegate to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), explained that the government had called for a high-level meeting.

He regretted the recurrence of such actions against the Holy Quran and even more that the person in question is of Iraqi origin this time.

"It pains us that this act took place on the first day of the Muslim Eid and in front of a mosque where the blessed Eid Al-Adha prayer was held”, he said.

Naqshbandi indicated that Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Al-Sudani and Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein took several steps, including contacting the UN Sec-Gen. in this regard.

Hussein received a phone call from his Swedish counterpart Tobias Billstrom to discuss the incident.

The Foreign Ministry summoned the Swedish Ambassador, Jessica Svardstrom, and notified her of Iraq's strong protest over her government's permission for an extremist to burn a copy of the Quran.

Naqshbandi explained that under Iraqi law, the head of the Supreme Judicial Council, Judge Faeq Zaidan, took legal action against the Iraqi person who burned a copy of the Holy Quran and had not acquired Swedish citizenship yet.

Among the legal measures, Iraq demanded he be repatriated, under the article mentioned in the Iraqi constitution regarding insulting Islamic sanctities.

Asharq Al-Awsat asked the diplomat about the motives for this act, and Naqshbandi explained that some institutions or parties push for such actions.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) held an extraordinary meeting of the open-ended Executive Committee to discuss measures and the repercussions of the incident. Naqshbandi described the final statement as solid and practical.

The OIC called for unified and collective measures to prevent the recurrence of acts of desecration of the Quran

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Arab World

Hamas Armed Wing Says Disarmament Calls Are Unacceptable

25 March 2026, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli military strike on a target in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. (dpa)
25 March 2026, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli military strike on a target in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. (dpa)
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Hamas Armed Wing Says Disarmament Calls Are Unacceptable

25 March 2026, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli military strike on a target in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. (dpa)
25 March 2026, Palestinian Territories, Deir al-Balah: Smoke and flames rise after an Israeli military strike on a target in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. (dpa)

Hamas' armed wing said on Sunday raising the issue of ‌the ‌group's disarmament ‌in ⁠a "crude manner" was an attempt ⁠to continue what he ⁠called a ‌genocide ‌against the Palestinian ‌people.

In ‌a televised statement, the Hamas ‌armed wing spokesperson said the ⁠group ⁠would not accept such demands "under any circumstances."

Arab World

Zelenskyy in Syria to Discuss Security Cooperation with Sharaa

This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on April 5, 2026 shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus. (Handout / Ukrainian Presidential Press Service / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on April 5, 2026 shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus. (Handout / Ukrainian Presidential Press Service / AFP)
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Zelenskyy in Syria to Discuss Security Cooperation with Sharaa

This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on April 5, 2026 shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus. (Handout / Ukrainian Presidential Press Service / AFP)
This handout photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on April 5, 2026 shows Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (L) and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa shaking hands during their meeting in Damascus. (Handout / Ukrainian Presidential Press Service / AFP)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pledged to work for enhanced security in talks on Sunday with his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa, as Kyiv seeks to promote its military expertise across the region following the outbreak of the Iran war. 

Zelenskyy, continuing his tour of Middle East countries, also said Ukraine wants to contribute to food security in the region. 

In recent weeks, Zelenskyy has visited several countries across the Middle East, offering Ukrainian expertise in countering drone and missile attacks, developed during its four-year war with ‌Russia. 

"We agreed ‌to work together to provide more security ‌and opportunities ⁠for development for ⁠our societies," Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. "There is a great interest in exchanging military and security experience." 

Zelenskyy told the Syrian leader that Ukraine, as a major grain producer, was a reliable supplier of food and said the two leaders "discussed joint opportunities to strengthen food security across the region." 

In Türkiye on Saturday, Zelenskyy said he had ⁠agreed on "new steps" in security cooperation with Turkish ‌President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and discussed opportunities ‌in joint gas infrastructure projects and gas field development. 

"Today in Damascus we ‌continue our active Ukrainian diplomacy aimed at real security and ‌economic cooperation," Zelenskyy said on X after his arrival. 

It was the Ukrainian leader's first trip to Syria since diplomatic relations were re-established at the end of last year following the fall of Syria's long-time strongman ‌Bashar al-Assad. 

Zelenskyy’s talks with Sharaa were linked to defense in light of the US-Israeli war in ⁠Iran, said ⁠one Syrian source, a government adviser. Syria is not known to have any air defenses capable of dealing with Iranian drones or missiles. 

Syria is home to two major Russian military bases, used by its navy and air force. Sharaa said on Tuesday at an event in Chatham House in London that work was under way to transform these into "centers to train the Syrian army." 

Arab World

Israel Renews Lebanon Strikes, Forces Syria Border Crossing Closed

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs, on April 5, 2026. (AFP)
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs, on April 5, 2026. (AFP)
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Israel Renews Lebanon Strikes, Forces Syria Border Crossing Closed

Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs, on April 5, 2026. (AFP)
Smoke rises from the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's southern suburbs, on April 5, 2026. (AFP)

Israeli strikes on south Beirut and its suburbs killed at least four people on Sunday, a day after Israel threatened to hit Lebanon's main border crossing with Syria, forcing it to close. 

The Israeli military also carried out deadly attacks on Lebanon's south, one of which killed seven people including a family of six. 

Israel has launched airstrikes across Lebanon as well as a ground invasion in the south since March 2, when armed group Hezbollah entered the war in the Middle East on the side of its backer Iran. 

Hezbollah on Sunday claimed to have fired a cruise missile at an Israeli warship off the coast, but the Israeli military told AFP it was "not aware" of such an incident. 

One of Israel's strikes in Beirut on Sunday killed at least four people and wounded 39 in the Jnah neighborhood, the Lebanese health ministry said. 

It landed about 100 meters away from the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the largest public medical facility in Lebanon, a medical source told AFP. 

Another attack struck a building elsewhere in the area that the Israeli military had warned it would target. 

After the first attack, 53-year-old Jnah resident Nancy Hassan thought she was safe at home. 

"Shortly after, the planes were flying overhead, and we heard a huge bang, then stones rained down on us," she told AFP. 

Hassan lost her daughter in an Israeli strike on the same area during the 2024 war between Hezbollah and Israel. 

"My daughter was killed, she was 23 years old. Today, her friends were killed. Every time, they bomb us in the neighborhood without warning," she added. 

Zakaria Tawbeh, deputy head of the Rafik Hariri hospital, said they received "four killed, three Sudanese and a 15-year-old girl, and 31 wounded". 

"Lots of glass was broken, and some of our patients had panic attacks." 

Israel also launched several strikes on the nearby southern suburbs, an area now largely evacuated but where Hezbollah holds sway. 

In a statement, the military warned it had "begun striking Hezbollah infrastructure sites". 

- Vital crossing - 

On Saturday, Israel had said it would target the Masnaa border crossing between Lebanon and Syria, the main gateway between the two countries. 

"Due to Hezbollah's use of the Masnaa crossing for military purposes and smuggling of combat equipment, the (Israeli army) intends to carry out strikes on the crossing in the near future," said the military's Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee, urging people to leave the area. 

The border post was quickly evacuated on the Lebanese side. 

In Syria, borders and customs public relations director Mazen Aloush insisted the crossing was exclusively used by civilians, and said it would temporarily due to the threats. 

Masnaa is a vital trade route for both countries and a key gateway to the rest of the region for Lebanese people. 

Military expert Hassan Jouni told AFP that Israel's threat to strike the crossing "is not based on sound security considerations, but rather aims to pressure the Lebanese government... to disarm Hezbollah". 

At another border crossing further north known as Qaa, an AFP correspondent on Sunday saw a long line of cars and vans waiting to enter Syria as people sought an alternative route. 

- Family killed - 

Israeli attacks on Lebanon since the start of the war have killed more than 1,400 people, including 126 children, and displaced over a million, according to Lebanese authorities. 

In the southern Lebanese town of Kfar Hatta, far from the border with Israel, an Israeli strike killed seven people including a four-year-old girl, the health ministry said Sunday. 

The Lebanese army mourned an off-duty soldier killed in the attack. 

The Israeli army had issued an evacuation warning for the town on Saturday evening. 

A source from Lebanon's civil defense told AFP that a family of six who had been displaced from a town further south were waiting for a relative to pick them up in a vehicle when they were killed. The relative also perished in the strike. 

An AFP photographer saw at least eight homes destroyed by attacks in Kfar Hatta. 

As Israeli troops push into border areas in southern Lebanon, destroying villages, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun reiterated his call for talks with Israel, saying he wanted to spare his country's south from destruction on the scale seen in the Palestinian territory of Gaza. 

"Why don't we negotiate... until we can at least save the homes that have not yet been destroyed?" he said in a televised address.