Thousands of Muslims took to the streets to express outrage over Quran desecration in Sweden

By ABBY SEWELL
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Thousands of people took to the streets in a handful of Muslim-majority countries to express their outrage at the desecration of a copy of the Quran in Sweden. Friday’s demonstrations came a day after protesters stormed the country’s embassy in Iraq. The protests in Iraq, Lebanon and Iran that followed weekly prayers were controlled and peaceful. That stands in contrast to scenes in Baghdad on Thursday, when demonstrators occupied the Swedish Embassy compound for several hours and set a small fire. The embassy staff had been evacuated before the storming, and Swedish news agency TT reported that they were relocated to Stockholm for security reasons.