On May 17, 2020, Al-Nujaba TV (Iraq) aired a discussion about flying the rainbow flag at the EU Embassy in Baghdad. Iraqi researcher Jomaa Al-Atwani said that Iraq is fighting a battle against a "cultural invasion," that Iraq’s religious leaders are being targeted by minions of America and the West, and that "Joker gangs," homosexuals, and their "emo types" have been declaring that nothing is sacred. He also criticized the U.S. for giving rights to homosexuals, who he said transgress the laws of nature.
In addition, Al-Atwani said that the American Embassy sends Iraqi students to the U.S. in order to teach them "sex culture," so that they return to Iraq "charged up." He added that this danger must be confronted immediately because within a few decades, Iraqi families may not be able to prevent their children from practicing "deviant activity." Furthermore, Iraqi political analyst Wael Al-Rikaby said that all the countries that agreed that the rainbow flag should be flown at the EU Embassy in Baghdad should apologize to the Iraqi people. He also said that homosexuals are outcasts who are rejected by their families.
Jomaa Al-Atwani: "The real battle that we are fighting today is the battle [against] the cultural invasion. What are the manifestations of this cultural invasion? First of all, the enemy targets your religious leaders. For months now, our religious leaders, who consider our cultural and religious capital, have been targeted by the minions of the West and America in Iraq. Some among those Joker gangs, those homosexuals and those emo types, have torn posters of religious authorities and declared that nothing is sacred anymore – not the religion, not the Quran, and not the religious authorities.
"They have done this for a while, and today they are not stopping at that. They have gone so far as giving rights to the homosexuals, who transgress the laws of humanity. Only recently has America recognized homosexuality. It was Obama who signed the Homosexuality Law after a huge struggle with the American people, because homosexuality violates the law of humanity. It's not just about Islam and about being prohibited by the shari'a. It's human nature. A normal and natural human being will not agree to marry a man. Men marrying men is abhorrent by nature, let alone by the shari'a."
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Wael Al-Rikaby: "Denunciation is not enough. An apology by the [EU] delegation should be expected. The [rainbow] flag must be removed quickly and for real. All the countries that agreed to the flying of this flag must extend apologies to the Iraqi people, like my colleague said. This is the holy month of Ramadhan. The homosexual act is mentioned and prohibited in our Quran. This is the story of the people of Sodom and the way Allah punished them. When you provoke me and fly this flag in support of a group that is insignificant among the Iraqi people... They are outcasts. If someone supports this obnoxious act, he is rejected by his family and by everybody."
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Jomaa Al-Atwani: "There are organizations in Iraq that are supported by the Americans. Our foreign ministry knows about it. RAND Corporation, the British War College [sic]... The American Embassy sends dozens of male and female teenage students to the U.S., in order to teach them sex culture and how to practice sex. They come back all charged up. Today, we still have norms, and a religious culture and atmosphere that prevent all this, but within a few decades, when this generation grows up learning that deviant activity is normal – will a father be able to prevent his son from engaging in this? Will a mother be able to prevent her daughter from engaging in it? Therefore, we must confront this danger from this moment."