Muslim groups, countries call for boycott of Swedish products

ANKARA – The incident of burning Muslim holy book Quran outside a mosque in Sweden threatens to escalate into a trade war.

Many influential Muslim groups in the Middle East and North Africa have called for a boycott of Swedish products.

Last week, the Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, the oldest Sunni institution in the Muslim world, called on Muslims to boycott Swedish products.

Yemen’s Minister of Industry and Trade, Muhammad Sharif al-Mutahar, announced a boycott of Swedish products earlier this month.

Similarly, Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme Council for Economic Coordination, called for a boycott on July 23.

Last month, a 37-year-old Iraqi refugee tore out pages from the Quran and set them on fire outside Stockholm’s Central Mosque.

A Swedish court allowed him to continue the desecration.

Several Muslims in the Middle East and North Africa have taken to social media to call for boycotting Swedish products under the hashtags “Punish the Swedish Government” and “Boycott Swedish Products”

Sweden is one of the largest economies in Europe with a GDP of $585.94 billion.

Large multinational companies such as Ikea, which manufactures and sells furniture and home accessories, fashion retailer H&M, home appliance maker Electrolux, and mobile technology provider Ericsson are based in Sweden.

The largest importers of Swedish products among Muslim countries are Türkiye and Saudi Arabia.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country will teach a lesson to arrogant Westerners who insult Muslims. He said hurting the feelings of Muslims cannot be called freedom of thought.

Saudi Arabia also said that hateful and repeated acts cannot be justified in any way.