Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan emphasized the need for collective action Saturday to address escalating Islamophobia and xenophobia in Western nations.

“The vile attack on our sacred book, the Quran, in Sweden on the first day of Eid al-Adha reveals the terrifying dimensions of Islamophobia,” he said in a video sent to the Gala Dinner of the 46th Annual Convention of the Association of Physicians of Pakistani Descent of North America (APPNA).

Erdogan emphasized the responsibility of all Muslims to prevent a recurrence.

“All of us, all Muslims, have a great responsibility to ensure that such acts, to which we react very strongly in Türkiye, do not recur. If we act as one heart and one wrist, no one in the world dare to attack the sanctities of Muslims,” he said,

Erdogan also acknowledged the strong bond between Türkiye and Pakistan as two brotherly nations, highlighting exceptional relations between the two countries./aa