Sweden

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Swedish police grants permit to burn Hebrew Bible outside Israeli embassy, drawing widespread criticism

(JTA) — Israeli officials and Jewish leaders are pushing back after Swedish police granted a permit to someone who plans to burn a Hebrew Bible in front of the Israeli embassy in Stockholm this weekend.

https://www.jta.org/2023/07/14/global/sweden-grants-permit-to-burn-torah-outside-israeli-embassy-drawing-widespread-criticism?

Swedish man abandons Torah-burning, saying it was a stunt: ‘We have to respect each other’

(JTA) — The Swedish man who applied for and received a permit to burn Hebrew and Christian Bibles near the Israeli embassy in Stockholm announced on Saturday that he had never planned to carry out the act.

https://www.jta.org/2023/07/16/global/swedish-man-abandons-torah-burning-saying-it-was-a-stunt-we-have-to-respect-each-other?

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A diplomatic fight breaks out after a man desecrated the Quran

BAGHDAD (AP) — Protesters angered by an Iraqi man in Sweden who threatened to burn a copy of the Quran stormed the Swedish Embassy in Baghdad early Thursday, overrunning the diplomatic compound and starting a fire.

https://apnews.com/article/iraq-swedish-embassy-attack-quran-burning-35c40d1cbfa5db845d5c042d86f4b6cb

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Iraq expels Sweden ambassador, embassy stormed over Quran burning

Protesters angered by burning of copies of the Quran in Sweden set fire to the Swedish embassy in the Iraqi capital.

https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/7/20/protesters-storm-swedish-embassy-in-baghdad-over-quran-burning?

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Sweden’s leader turns to the military for help as gang violence escalates Sweden’s prime minister has said that he’s summoned the head of the military to discuss how the armed forces can help police deal with an unprecedented crime wave that has shocked the country with almost daily shootings and bombings. Read more.

Why this matters: Getting the military involved in crime-fighting would be a highly unusual step for Sweden, underscoring the severity of the gang violence that has claimed a dozen lives across the country this month. More than 60 people died in shootings last year in Sweden, the highest figure on record. This year is on track to be the same or worse.   Swedish media have linked the latest surge in violence to a feud between rival factions of a criminal gang known as the Foxtrot network. “Sweden has never before seen anything like this,” Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in a speech to the nation.    Kristersson said that he met with New York Mayor Eric Adams last week to learn from the city’s efforts to fight crime, including surveillance methods and weapon detection systems. The prime minister said that the government is overhauling Sweden’s criminal code to give police more powers, criminals longer sentences and witnesses better protection.

Related coverage ➤ In Sweden, 2 explosions rip through dwellings and at least 1 is reportedly connected to a gang feud A 13-year-old boy found shot in the woods was a victim of Sweden’s gang violence, prosecutor says

 

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Sweden Issues Ominous Warning to Citizens

Swedish officials are warning their citizens to be readier than ever in case of war.

https://local.newsbreak.com/washington-state/3291151398523-sweden-issues-ominous-warning-to-citizens?

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From pop to politics, what to know as Sweden prepares for the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest

LONDON (AP) — It’s springtime in Europe — time for the annual blossoming of spectacle and sound known as the Eurovision Song Contest.

https://apnews.com/article/eurovision-2024-song-contest-sweden-2a6a9a789415f04ae997a688274e4e6f?

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Sweden seeks to answer worried students’ questions about NATO and war after its neutrality ends

STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AP) — The teacher’s opening question to students in Stockholm is blunt: “Has joining NATO increased the threat to Sweden?”

https://apnews.com/article/sweden-nato-membership-neutrality-schools-russia-468c5a1dba03b246e6723458d2d21293?

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Swedes take a new step in parental leave. Grandparents can now get paid to take care of grandkids

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Sweden launched a groundbreaking new law on Monday that allows grandparents to step in and get paid parental leave while taking care of their grandchildren for up to three months of a child’s first year.

https://apnews.com/article/sweden-parental-leave-grandparents-stepparents-a2dc2a77530cf8f52a39bc8c830482ec?

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A 19th-century shipwreck is filled with Champagne bottles and Sweden won’t allow anyone a sip

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — No one will be allowed to fish out any of the nearly 100 bottles of 19th-century Champagne and mineral water nestled in a shipwreck off southern Sweden without proper authorization, officials said Wednesday.

https://apnews.com/article/wreck-champagne-mineral-water-sweden-polish-divers-eb27247f0c173403a8b3dd9acfcc6fd9?

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Sweden seizes vessel suspected of ‘sabotage’ after undersea data cable rupture in Baltic Sea

RIGA, Latvia (AP) — Swedish prosecutors announced Sunday night that they have opened a preliminary investigation into suspected aggravated “sabotage” and ordered the detention of a vessel in the Baltic Sea suspected of damaging an underwater fiber optic cable connecting Latvia and the Swedish island of Gotland earlier that day.

https://apnews.com/article/latvia-denmark-underwater-cable-damage-investigation-63da5ef0d577bca12bbe118d527d3a14?

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Swedish navy encountering Russian submarines ‘almost weekly’ – and more could be on the way

The Swedish navy encounters Russian submarines in the Baltic Sea on an “almost weekly” basis, its chief of operations has said, and is preparing for a further increase in the event of ceasefire or armistice in the Ukraine war.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/dec/06/swedish-navy-chief-russia-baltic-presence-ukraine-peace?

ps:So this must be OK too? For those that approve Russia invading Ukraine!!