(AFP) Muslim leaders addressing the United Nations on Tuesday berated the West over burnings of the Koran, denouncing the acts protected as free speech as discriminatory.
Sweden has seen a series of burnings of the Islamic holy book, with the government voicing condemnation but saying it cannot stop acts protected under laws on free expression.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — who has put pressure for months on Sweden over its welcome to Kurdish activists Turkey sees as terrorists — said that Western countries were seeing “a plague” of racism including Islamophobia.
“It has reached intolerable levels,” he told the UN General Assembly.
“Unfortunately, populist politicians in many countries continue to play with fire by encouraging such dangerous trends,” he said.
