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Iraqi Shia cleric Moqtada al-Sadr sparked outrage after calling the earthquake in Turkey-Syria divine punishment. Photo/Reuters
BAGHDAD – Iraqi Shia cleric Muqtada al-Sadr sparked outrage online after citing the devastating earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday was triggered by the weak response of Arab and Muslim countries to burning the Quran in Europe.
Sadr earlier posted a statement of condolences to the people of Turkey and Syria after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey early Monday.
Sadr earlier posted statements of condolences to the people of Turkey and Syria, after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit southern Turkey early Monday.
“If Arab and Muslim countries had taken a respectful stance in defending the noble Koran… even if it was at a level like closing the Swedish embassy in their countries or reducing diplomatic representation, God Almighty would not have sent the message (of a terrible earthquake), ” he wrote on Twitter last Tuesday as quoted from New Arab, Friday (10/2/2023).
Read: Strongly criticized, Turkey’s decision to block Twitter access for 12 hours
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday said the quake was the “worst” disaster the country has ever experienced.
The quake had a similarly devastating effect on a wide area of northern Syria, which has suffered from a 12-year conflict and an unprecedented economic crisis.
“So for how long? How much longer is the distance from God, His scriptures and His holiness?” asked al-Sadr, as he denounced the “unacceptable burning of the Torah by some Muslims” in response to the burning of the Koran.
Arab and Muslim countries around the world condemned last month’s burning of Muslim holy books in Stockholm by anti-Islam activist Rasmus Paludan, a dual Danish-Swedish national.
Read: Turkey Earthquake Victims Angry at Erdogan’s Slow Response: Where is the State?
