Sweden: three police hurt in riot before demo where Qur’an was to be burned

The Guardian is the only English language report of this. They define it as ‘far right’, and I don’t agree with burning the Koran myself; it should be read, so what it says is known and therefore can be countered.

Three police officers have been taken to hospital after a riot broke out in a Swedish town where a demonstration that included a Qur’an burning was planned.

Footage from the scene in the city of Linkoping on Sweden’s east coast showed a car burning and dozens of masked people attacking police cars.

“The mood has been aggressive and there have been attacks against police at the scene,” police spokesperson Asa Willsund told broadcaster SVT on Thursday, adding that things had calmed down after police had backed off. Shouldn’t it be that the mood calmed down as the police restored order?

The riot started before a planned demonstration by anti-Muslim Danish politician Rasmus Paludan and his party Stram Kurs (Hard Line) that was meant to include a burning of the Muslim holy book, the Qur’an.

While Stram Kurs had been given permission to hold their demonstration in the Skaggetorp neighbourhood – where more than 50% of inhabitants were born abroad – they were not able to start it as police were dealing with the rioters.

According to  this post on Twitter the demonstration did go ahead “While he was burning the Quran under police protection, the crowd shouted at Paludan.”

And here and below

On April 14, Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan burned a Koran in a predominantly Muslim town of Linkoping, Sweden. When he burned the Qur’an under the protection of the Swedish police . Look at the stupidity of the West, may the curse be upon you,

One of the reasons I admire Hatun Tash; she holds up the Koran and points out its flaws, systematically and with justification.  She has no need to burn it when she can dismantle it, book by book.