Iran Condemns Dutch Anti-Islam Film

 TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran Friday strongly condemned the anti-Islamic film made by Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders and warned of “consequences of such a provocative move.”In a statement, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Seyed Mohammad Ali Hosseini termed the video “insulting and anti-Islamic” with “deep antagonism” of some Western states towards Islam and Muslims.

The spokesman called on the European Union in general and the Dutch government in particular to stop the showing of the video and to respect what over a billion Muslims worldwide hold sacred.

“Such a dirty act …. reveals continued enmity and deep hostility of such Western nationals against Islam and Muslims,” he said.

Alongside with Iran, Muslims in Islamic countries reacted in anger to the film.

In Pakistan, dozens of people staged a protest outside a mosque in the port city of Karachi, organized by the largest Muslim party, Jamaat-e-Islami.

Some demonstrators demanded Pakistan sever diplomatic ties with the Netherlands.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, condemned the film.

Indonesian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Kristiarto Legowo called it “misleading and full of racism,” and said producing the film was an irresponsible act “done under the blanket of freedom of the press.”

The leader of the Dutch Freedom Party posted on the Internet his film, Fitna, which features passages from the holy Quran, speeches by extremist Islamic preachers and violent images.

The film, which recycled film clips from terrorist attacks in the US, Spain and the Netherlands, urges Muslims to tear out “hate-filled” verses from the Koran and starts and finishes with a cartoon of Prophet Mohammad (Peace Be Upon Him) with a bomb under his turban, originally published in Danish newspapers, accompanied by the sound of ticking.

The image ignited violent protests around the world and a boycott of Danish products in 2006. Muslims regard any depiction of the Prophet as offensive.

Shortly afterward Dutch television channels rebroadcast segments of it.

The Dutch government has distanced itself from Wilders and tried to prevent the kind of backlash Denmark suffered over the Prophet cartoons.

Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende said in a televised speech on Thursday he rejected Wilders’ views and was pleased by the initial restrained reactions of Dutch Muslim organizations.

Thousands of Dutch people demonstrated Saturday in Amsterdam to show that Wilders does not represent the whole country.

Dutch exporters have expressed fears of a possible boycott.

The European Union supports the Dutch government’s approach and believes the film serves no purpose other than “inflaming hatred,” the Slovenian EU presidency said in a statement.

“The European Union and its member states apply the principle of the freedom of speech which is part of our values and traditions. However, it should be exercised in a spirit of respect for religious and other beliefs and convictions.”

NATO has expressed concern the film could worsen security for foreign forces in Afghanistan, including 1,650 Dutch troops.

Before the film’s release, demonstrators had taken to the streets from Afghanistan to Indonesia to burn Dutch and Danish flags. They were enraged after newspapers reprinted the Prophet cartoons in solidarity with the cartoonist, Kurt Westergaard.