The Taliban has suspended all Swedish activities in Afghanistan over burning of the Quran in Sweden.
Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s senior spokesperson, said a statement on Tuesday that unless Sweden apologised, all activities by Sweden and Swedish organisations in Afghanistan will remain suspended “until they apologize to the Muslim world”.
Last month, copies of the Quran were burnt by two people in the Swedish capital, Stockholm, triggering widespread condemnations and protests in the Muslim world.
The Taliban called the acts as “hateful and despicable”.
Sweden shut its embassy in Kabul after the Taliban’s return to power in August 2021 and has advised its citizens against travels to Afghanistan.
The suspension in activities will impact the work of Swedish NGOs operating in Afghanistan. In February, the Taliban arrested two employees of the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SCA), which has been active in Afghanistan since 1980.
