Sweden: Iran used criminal groups for ‘security-threatening activities’

Lazar Berman is The Times of Israel's diplomatic reporter

Iran has conducted “security-threatening activities in and against Sweden for several years,” says a statement released by Sweden’s Säpo security service.

The agency adds that Iran is targeting enemies of the regime, including Israeli and Jewish targets, and Iranian opposition figures.

“Iran has previously used violence in other countries in Europe with the aim of silencing critical voices and perceived threats to its own regime,” says Säpo. “To carry out these security-threatening activities, the Iranian regime has on occasion made use of criminal networks.”

Earlier today, the Mossad said that Iran was using Swedish gangs to attack Israeli and Jewish sites, including the Israeli embassy in Stockholm.

“The security police can confirm that this also happens in Sweden,” says the Säpo statement. “In Sweden, the Security Police has in recent years dealt with several concrete cases where assassination plans linked to Iranian security services were averted, where, among other things, criminal networks were used as proxies.”

“Sweden must not be a platform for the security-threatening activities of Iran or other states,” says the agency.

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