Swedish police on Friday detained a woman who sprayed an anti-Islam activist using a fire extinguisher as he staged a Quran-burning protest outside the Iranian Embassy in Stockholm, The Associated Press reported.
Video from the scene showed the woman rushing up to the activist, Salwan Momika, and spraying white powder toward him before she was intercepted by plainclothes police officers who led her away. Momika, who appeared stunned but unhurt, then resumed his demonstration, which had been authorized by police.
Police spokeswoman Towe Hägg said the woman, who was not identified by police, was detained on suspicion of disturbing public order and violence against a police officer.
Momika is responsible for several recent incidents of desecrations of the Quran in Sweden, which have caused an uproar in the Muslim world.
In response to the Quran burnings, protesters stormed Sweden’s Embassy in Baghdad last month and carried out a firebomb attack on the Swedish diplomatic mission in Beirut last week.
Sweden on Thursday raised its terror alert to the second-highest level, saying the country had become a priority target for terrorist groups.
Momika said he would continue to burn the Quran despite the threats directed at him and Sweden, saying he wants to protect Sweden's population from the messages of the Quran.
“I have freedom of speech,” Swedish news agency TT quoted him as saying.
Sweden recently said it was examining legal and legislative possibilities to ensure a ban on the desecration of holy books throughout the country.
(Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)