Afghanistan's ruling Taliban* has suspended all activities conducted by Sweden in the war-torn South Asian nation over the burning of the Quran in the Swedish capital of Stockholm last month, which earned the European nation widespread condemnation in the Muslim world.
"After insulting the Holy Quran and the Muslim faith in Sweden, the Islamic Emirate suspends Sweden's activities in Afghanistan until they apologize to the Muslims for this heinous act. IEA's relevant organizations are obliged to comply with this directive," Taliban spokesperson Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement on Tuesday.
The Taliban official labeled the episode a "rude act" before urging other Islamic countries to "reassess" their relations with Stockholm.
"Looking into the rude act of Sweden, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan wants other Muslim countries to reconsider their interaction with this country," he added.
The Origins of Sweden's Quran Burning Incident
The Taliban's move came nearly three weeks after an immigrant of Iraqi origin living in Sweden burned the Islamic religious scripture in front of a mosque at a planned anti-Quran protest in Stockholm.
Notably, the burning of the Quran in Sweden came on Eid ul-Adha, a major holiday for Muslims, further infuriating the believers of Islam the world over.
Meanwhile, the development in Afghanistan is expected to have a deep impact on the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, a non-governmental organization providing aid in the areas of education, health, and rural development in the impoverished South Asian country.
Turkey Wades Into Diplomatic Row
On the other hand, Afghanistan is not the only nation to slam Sweden for allowing the burning of Islam's holy book.
Previously, Turkey and Sweden were engaged in a bitter row over the incident with the former even planning to block the latter's entry into NATO.
But tensions seemed to have cooled off with Turkey reportedly getting an assurance from the US about the transfer of American-built F-16s to Ankara if it supported Sweden's bid to join the North Atlantic military grouping.
* under UN sanctions for terrorism