THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) — An anti-Islam activist who tore pages out of the Quran and called it a “fascist book” in front of the Dutch parliament building in January is being investigated on suspicion of insulting Muslims, prosecutors said Friday.
While desecrating Islam’s holy book is not a crime in the Netherlands, prosecutors said comments that Wagensveld made while damaging the Quran amounted to an unlawful insult to the Muslim community.
In a written statement, the Public Prosecution Service of The Hague said his comments are suspected of breaching an article of the Dutch penal code “which states that deliberately insulting a group of people because of their religion or belief is a crime.”
The statement did not refer to Wagensveld by name, in line with Dutch privacy rules, but referred to a 54-year-old Dutch national who lives in Germany.
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“The suspect will be questioned on this matter by the Dutch police,” prosecutors said.
On Twitter, Wagensveld retweeted a post by a supporter calling the action an abuse of power.
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