Iran may have played a role in attacks on Israeli embassies: Swedish security service

Swedish intelligence agency Sapo said Thursday that Iran may have been involved in explosions and gunfire around Israeli embassies in Sweden and Denmark this week.

In Denmark, police said on Wednesday they had arrested three Swedish nationals after two explosions, probably caused by hand grenades, near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen.

The Israeli embassy in Stockholm was the target of a shooting on Tuesday, according to Swedish police.

Asked about reports of ties to Iran, Fredrik Hallstrom, chief of operations at the Sapo agency, said at a news conference that “there are some things that could point in that direction.”

“Partly because of the choice of goals and modus operandi, but that is an assumption rather than pure knowledge,” Hallstrom said.

In May, Sapo said Iran was recruiting members of Swedish criminal gangs to commit “acts of violence” against Israeli and other interests in Sweden – a claim Iran denied.

Swedish broadcaster SVT reported on Wednesday that it had received information that the two latest attacks on the embassy were ordered by the Swedish criminal network Foxtrot – on behalf of Iran.

A Danish court on Thursday remanded two of the arrested Swedes – aged 16 and 19 – in custody for 27 days.

Copenhagen police said the third Swede, who was arrested near the crime scene, had been released.

Since the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas in October 2023, several incidents have been reported apparently targeting Israeli interests in Sweden.

In February, police found a grenade on the grounds of the Israeli embassy compound, which the ambassador said was an attempted attack.

In May, gunshots were fired outside the Israeli embassy, ​​prompting the country to step up security measures around Israeli interests and Jewish community institutions.

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