Kuwait to print 100,000 Quran copies translated into Swedish

Kuwait has decided to print 100,000 copies of the Holy Quran translated into Swedish, a project to emphasise Islamic principles and values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence among all human beings, the state news agency Kuna reported.

The General Authority for the Care of Printing and Publishing the Holy Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet and their Sciences made the announcement following a directive by Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmed Nawaf al Ahmad al Sabah.

Preparations were ongoing for the printing of the copies of the Quran and ''their distribution in the Kingdom of Sweden,” the Chairman of the printing authority, Dr Fahad al Daihani, said.

He said the Kuwaiti government's decision was to emphasise ''tolerance'' and the true teachings of Islam.

Desecration of the Quran

The move comes in the wake of growing concerns over the desecration of copies of the Quran in some European countries with the latest incidents in Sweden and Germany.

The incidents have sparked international condemnation and outrage as well as diplomatic backlash.

The United Nations Human Rights Council is due to vote on the issue of religious hatred on Wednesday after Pakistan proposed a draft resolution condemning the desecration of the Quran and demanding countries to take action to stop it.

UN condemnation

The UN Human Rights Council condemned recent attacks on the Muslim holy book, the Quran, despite Western countries' votes against the resolution.

The draft resolution was presented by Pakistan on behalf of the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC).

The resolution, which calls for condemnation of attacks targeting the Quran and described them as "acts of religious hatred," was put to vote by the 47-member council.

The resolution was adopted with 28 countries voting in favor, 12 countries voting against it, and 7 countries abstaining at the 53rd regular session of the UN Human Rights Council.

Countries that voted in favor of the resolution included Algeria, Argentina, Bangladesh, Bolivia, Cameroon, China, Ivory Coast, Cuba, Eritrea, Gabon, Gambia, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Morocco, Pakistan, Qatar, Senegal, Somalia, South Africa, Sudan, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

Belgium, Costa Rica, the Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Romania, the UK, and the US voted against the resolution.

Türkiye does not have the right to vote, as it has observer status at the UN Human Rights Council.

Also, the UK, US and some European Union member countries rejected condemning the burning of the Quran during an urgent debate Tuesday at the UN Human Rights Council over the rising number of attacks against the Muslim holy book.