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Decrying Qur’an desecration

Another blasphemous act against the holy Qur’an in Denmark, despite growing outrage across the Muslim world. Two members of a group called Danish Patriots desecrated the holy book in front of the Iraqi embassy in Copenhagen. Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has condemned it as an act of stupidity but added that burning religious books is not a crime in Denmark. Iraq has immediately condemned the action. Earlier on Monday, Iran strongly denounced the desecration of the Holy Qur’an and called for responsible action to prevent the repeat of such reprehensible crimes. People in the Yemeni capital Sana’a have taken to the streets to condemn the recent desecration of the holy Qur’an in Sweden and Denmark. The protesters denounced both the perpetrators and European officials authorizing the blasphemous act against the holy book of Islam. They called for more actions by Muslim governments worldwide to condemn the sacrilege of Islamic sanctities. Yemeni officials addressing the demonstrators stressed that the Qur’an burnings are not isolated incidents carried out by individuals but plans coordinated by the United States and Zionist lobbies.

Israel crisis

Now, despite mass protests, Israel’s parliament has passed a bill that limits the powers of the Supreme Court. The third and final Knesset vote on the bill passed 64-0. The opposition boycotted the session in protest, and stormed out of the chamber after chanting “shame.” The law, proposed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, is part of a wider effort to overhaul the judiciary. The head of Israel's main public sector union says he will meet with other union officials to discuss the possibility of a general strike. Ahead of the Knesset vote, clashes erupted in al-Quds as Israeli police tried to disperse angry protesters. Several demonstrators were also arrested. The legislation curbs the power of the Supreme Court to overrule the cabinet decisions. Opponents say Netanyahu, who is on trial over corruption charges, is trying to use the overhaul to quash possible judgments against him.

Russia-Ukraine war

Russia has threatened to take tough retaliatory measures after Ukraine claimed a drone attack on the capital Moscow. Russia’s foreign ministry described the attack as another use of terrorist methods and intimidation of the civilian population. It also linked what it called Ukraine’s brazen actions to the West’s efforts to further escalate the situation. Russian officials said over a dozen Ukrainian drones hit two buildings in Moscow and an ammunition depot in the Russian-held Crimea peninsula. A Ukrainian defense source said the attack on the capital was a special operation by Kiev’s military intelligence. It came after Ukraine vowed to retaliate a Russian missile strike on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa which claimed two lives.

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