Ramzan Kadyrov, who ruled the Russian sub-republic of Chechnya with an iron fist for over 15 years, is suspected of involvement in torture and murder of dissidents. His troops are actively participating on the side of Russia in the war against Ukraine.
Now he reacts to the Koran burnings in Europe and Sweden in a post on Telegram. He calls on the world’s Muslims to act with force against “Satan’s servants”.
– Russia stands alone against the West’s aggressive, atheistic and colonial policy, he says and promises to take care of “those countries” that desecrate the Koran when Russia won over Ukraine.
Religion part of the propaganda
In his propaganda about the war, Ramzan Kadyrov often highlights Islam as an important driving force.
– For every burnt letter in the Holy Koran, for every impious word directed against Islam. The entire Muslim world is already seeing the true nature of the West, its unjustified hatred of Russia, Islam, traditional families and human values, Kadyrov proclaimed as his troops were ordered to advance in Donetsk at the end of May.
Säpo: Government actors benefit from the situation
The security police warned earlier this week that state actors, and in particular Russia, are trying to take advantage of and fuel the negative attention Sweden has recently received.
– This type of statement is something that is in line with what we have seen and described for a long time, where religious and political representatives in different parts of the Muslim world, above all, call for different ways to act against Sweden and where different threats have been expressed , says Fredrik Hultgren-Friberg at Säkerhetspolisen’s press service to SVT Nyheter.
– State actors and foreign powers are behind parts of this, where, based on their own interests, they try to fuel the situation that Sweden finds itself in. It is primarily Russia, but also China and Iran that we assess as the main security threats.