Sweden links riots to criminal gangs
HELSINKI – Swedish police said Monday that the riots that have shaken several cities and towns in the Nordic country are extremely serious crimes against society and suspect some protesters are linked to criminal gangs that intentionally target police.
Sweden, a nation of 10 million, has seen unrest, scuffles, arson and violence since Thursday that has left some police officers and protesters injured. It was triggered by Danish far-right politician Rasmus Paludan’s meetings and planned Quran burnings across the country.
“We suspect that those involved (in the riots) have links to criminal gangs,” National Police Commissioner Anders Thornberg told a news conference on Monday. He added that some of those “criminal individuals” are known to police. “I have been in touch with the public prosecutor to prosecute these individuals.”
Sweden’s National Police Commander Jonas Hysing said Monday that 26 police and 14 individuals – protesters or other people – have been injured in the riots and 20 police vehicles destroyed or damaged.
The latest riots broke out Sunday night in Malmo, Sweden’s third-largest city, as an angry crowd of mainly young people set fire to car tires, debris and garbage cans in the Rosengard district. Protesters threw stones and police responded by firing tear gas into the crowd. A school and several cars were set on fire, but the situation was calm by early Monday.
A total of 11 people were detained and three people arrested in Malmo. No serious injuries were reported.
Since Thursday, in addition to Malmo, riots, unrest and violent clashes have been reported in Stockholm, the central city of Orebro, the eastern cities of Linkoping and Norrkoping and southern town of Landskrona.
“There is a lot to suggest that the police were targeted,” Hysing said, adding that some protesters were suspected of attempted murder, aggravated assault and violence against an official.
Both Thornberg and Hysing stressed that the main target for the rioters was Swedish police and society, not Paludan – seen by many Swedes merely as an agent provocateur – and his Stram Kurs (Hard Line) party, which runs on an anti-immigrant, anti-Islam agenda.