Five anti-Islam activists set fire to a Koran in front of the Egyptian embassy in Copenhagen on Tuesday, the third such incident in Denmark in less than a week, following Koran burnings in nearby Sweden that enraged Muslims.
Denmark and Sweden have said they deplore the burning of the Koran but cannot prevent it under rules protecting free speech. Last week, protesters in Iraq set the Swedish embassy in Baghdad ablaze.
Tuesday's demonstration in Copenhagen by a group called "Danish Patriots" followed Koran burnings the group staged on Monday and last week in front of the Iraqi embassy. Two such incidents have taken place in Sweden over the past month.
Iraq's foreign ministry on Monday called on authorities of European Union countries to "quickly reconsider so-called freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate" in light of the Koran burnings.
Egypt summons Sweden's chargé d'affaires over Koran burning
Egypt summoned Sweden's chargé d'affaires to condemn incidents where copies of the Koran have been burned, the foreign ministry's spokesperson said on Tuesday.
Egypt informed the chargé d'affaires of its "strong condemnation and complete rejection ... of the unfortunate and repeated incidents of burning and abuse of copies of the Holy Koran," the statement added.
Turkey on Monday said it strongly condemned what it called a "despicable attack" on the Koran and called on Denmark to take necessary measures to prevent this "hate crime" against Islam.
The Danish government has condemned the burnings as "provocative and shameful acts" but says it does not have the power to block non-violent demonstrators.
Danish foreign minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen said on Tuesday he had "had a constructive phone call" with Iraqi foreign minister Fuad Husseein on the two countries' bilateral relations and the Koran burnings.
"Repeated DK's condemnation of these shameful acts carried out by few individuals. Emphasized that all protests must remain peaceful," he wrote on X, the social network formerly known as Twitter.
"People benefit from an extended freedom of speech when they demonstrate," University of Copenhagen law Professor Trine Baumbach told Reuters, explaining Danish laws. "It does not just include verbal expression. People can express themselves in various ways, such as through the burning of items."