The heavily fortified Baghdad Green Zone, a central hub housing numerous foreign embassies and the cradle of Iraq’s government, faced a significant security threat when hundreds of Baghdad residents attempted to breach its defenses.
Disturbances Following Quran Desecration
In response to reports of a Quran burning incident outside the Iraqi embassy in Denmark by a far-right group, nearly 1,000 protesters took to the streets early on Saturday. Chants of “Yes, yes to the Quran!” resonated through the crowd, largely comprising young men. The protesters also expressed support for influential Iraqi Shia religious and political leader Muqtada al-Sadr, displaying images of the leader, flags of his movement, and the Iraqi flag.
Security forces successfully held the protesters at bay, barricading the Jumhuriya bridge leading to the Baghdad Green Zone, and effectively preventing them from reaching the Danish embassy. Nonetheless, another protest has been scheduled for later in the day.
Danish Incident Spurs Iraqi Outrage
Danish media reported that Danske Patrioter, a far-right ultra-nationalist group, set ablaze a copy of the Quran and an Iraqi flag outside the Iraqi embassy in Copenhagen, live streaming the incident on Facebook. This blatant act of sacrilege sparked the protests in Baghdad.
