Swedes hold peace vigil after truck attack

STOCKHOLM: Thousands of people gathered in central Stockholm yesterday for a “Lovefest” vigil against terrorism, as police pursue their investigation into this week’s deadly truck attack.

Shocked by Friday’s attack that left four dead and 15 injured – for which a 39-yearold Uzbek man is in custody – Stockholmers mobilised on Facebook, organising a vigil at Sergels Torg plaza near where the truck rammed into shoppers.

Sweden has been trying to get back on its feet this weekend after what authorities termed a terror attack, the motive for which was still unknown.

The method however was similar to previous attacks using vehicles in Nice, Berlin and London, all of them claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group.

There has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the Stockholm attack – the third in Europe in two weeks, coming on the heels of the car and knife assault outside London’s parliament and the Saint Petersburg metro bombing.

Police have not named the suspected driver of the truck, whom they arrested on Friday evening, but authorities said he was known to Sweden’s intelligence service for undisclosed reasons.

The man is suspected of speeding a stolen beer truck several hundred metres down the bustling pedestrian street Drottninggatan in the heart of Stockholm.

The vehicle mowed down shoppers before slamming into the facade of the busy Ahlens department store.

“There is nothing to indicate that we’ve got the wrong man. On the contrary, the suspicions have strengthened,” Swedish police chief Dan Eliasson said.

He said police found a suspect device in the cab of the truck and “a technical examination is ongoing”.

“We can’t go into what it is right now. whether it’s a bomb or a flammable device.”

The attack deeply shocked the usually tranquil Scandinavian nation, which prides itself on its openness and tolerance.

All day on Saturday, crowds milled behind the security fences blocking off the scene of the attack, laying flowers on the ground or poking them into the fence.

Several police cars parked near the scene were also covered in flowers by Swedes, who widely praised the emergency crews’ speedy response to the attack.

“Maybe something good will come of this,” Inger Morstedt, 75, told AFP, expressing hope that her fellow Swedes would become “even more open and welcoming”. – AFP