Asia-Pacific
Iran condemns prophet cartoon in Sweden media
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-03-18 00:59
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TEHRAN - Iran's Foreign Ministry condemned the release of an insulting cartoon of Prophet Muhammad in Sweden' s newspapers, the semi-official Fars news agency reported on Wednesday.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehman-Parast on Tuesday expressed indignation over the publishing of the insulting cartoon against Islam by the Sweden media and called on Swedish government to "seriously deal with the issue," the report said.
He described the contemptuous caricatures on Prophet Muhammad as an unethical move, and urged the Swedish government to counter disrespecting divine religions, Fars said.
"Sacrilege against Islam is not acceptable," Mehman-Parast was quoted as saying.
According to local satellite Press TV, after Swedish newspapers published the sacrilegious cartoon of Prophet Muhammad, students of Basij religious volunteer militia called on the Foreign Ministry to suspend relations with Sweden.
In a letter to Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki, Basij students from eight main universities in Tehran urged Iranian diplomatic authorities to swiftly cut ties with Sweden until Swedish officials apologize for the move and take meaningful measures against the insensitive media sources, the report said on Wednesday.
On March 10, the Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter reprinted a sacrilegious cartoon of Prophet Muhammad by Swedish caricaturist Lars Vilks, according to Press TV.
The cartoon was first published in Sweden in 2007, prompting worldwide protests by Muslims.
