Iranian diaspora protest rallies on Saturday, January 21, 2023
Iranian protesters held a rally outside the Imam Ali Mosque north of Stockholm, demanding the closure of the center, calling it "Islamic Republic's espionage nest."
The protesters paid homage to the victims killed by the Islamic Republic, lighting candles, and placing flowers next to their photos.
About two million of Sweden's population is made up of immigrants with different religions, and the government provides financial assistance to their religious centers, including the Imam Ali Mosque in Stockholm, affiliated to the Islamic Republic.
However, Iranians living in Sweden, human rights and political activists believe Imam Ali Mosque is not a place of worship, but a "nest of espionage for the Islamic Republic".
In the past year, Swedish media published numerous reports about Imam Ali and other mosques, including in Malmö, saying that temporary marriages are practiced in these mosques, calling it "legal prostitution".
Some Swedish parliamentarians have also called for the closure of such places because, according to them, these mosques, specifically the Imam Ali Mosque, receive funding from non-democratic governments such as the Islamic Republic of Iran.
In the past weeks, Iranians also gathered in front of the Islamic Center in Frankfurt and Hamburg, calling them dens of Islamic Republic espionage and demanding their closure.
In the meantime, Iranians living in Melbourne, Sydney, Adelaide, Brisbane, Hamburg, Cologne, Berlin, Copenhagen, Auckland, etc., held gatherings on Saturday to express support for the Iranian people's uprising against the Islamic Republic.