U.S. sanctions Swedish gang for attempting to attack Israel's Stockholm Embassy for Iran
March 12 (UPI) -- The United States on Wednesday sanctioned Swedish gang the Foxtrot Network and its fugitive leader Rawa Majid.
The Treasury Department alleged the Foxtrot Network is an international drug and weapons trafficking organization that was behind an attack on Israel's Stockholm Embassy for Iran in January 2024 and that Majid has specifically cooperated with the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence and Security.
"Iran's brazen use of transnational criminal organizations and narcotics traffickers underscores the regime's attempts to achieve its aims through any means, with no regard for the cost to communities across Europe," Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in a statement.
Swedish authorities said at the time they classified the January attack as a terrorist crime after finding what they described as a "dangerous object" at the Israeli Embassy in Stockholm.
"The hatred against Israel is frightening. Violent extremism must be stopped," Swedish Deputy Prime Minister Ebb Nusch said on social media after the object was found.
In 2023 Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson blamed "failed integration" for an increase in gang violence in the country.
For ten years intelligent people have been telling you that integration cannot work with Muslims. It was absurd to even try.
Reports in 2023 said the increased gang violence stemmed from the Foxtrot Network gang splitting into rival factions.
According to the Treasury Department the Foxtrot Network is one of the most prominent drug trafficking organizations in Sweden with a presence in other European countries.
Treasury said the gang traffics arms "and is one of the main contributors to rising violence in Sweden."
Iran, Treasury said, "has increasingly leveraged criminal networks as proxies to pursue its aims."
Main suspect in The Hague fatal explosion confessed “from the start,” prosecutors claim
The alleged main suspect in the devastating explosion at the Tarwekamp in the Mariahoeve district of The Hague broke down and admitted guilt almost immediately, prosecutors said. Moshtag B., 33, confessed “from the start” the Public Prosecution Service (OM) stated on Friday during the first public hearing into the criminal case. He is one of four men suspected of involvement in the incident that left six people dead, injured four others, and displaced dozens more after the explosion grew into a major fire that hit the apartment block in December.
B. was one of three defendants present in court for the status hearing, with the trial unlikely to take place until next year. B.’s lawyer, Gerard Spong, said that his client has enormous regret, and that is why he confessed immediately. All four suspects were remanded into pre-trial detention for an additional 90 days despite their attorneys’ arguments for their release.
B. allegedly plotted to take revenge on his ex-girlfriend, because he believed she had cheated on him. The woman was the owner of the bridal fashion shop at the ground floor of the building that was hit by the explosion. The Public Prosecution Service accused B. and two co-suspects of murder or manslaughter due to arson, as well as conspiring to commit the attack, and other related charges.
The prosecutors in the case said the current suspicion is that the defendants intended to commit the attack on December 1. That night, the police arrested two of the four suspects in a parking lot in Oosterhout. They were in a van with fourteen jerry cans full of gasoline, and also heavy fireworks. The two were detained and released after questioning.
Astonishing incompetence!
Nearly 200 liters of gasoline was used when suspects Ilias B. and Mourad B. set the fire on December 7, the OM stated. The explosion was so massive because it was ignited in a closed space, according to the Public Prosecution Service. Mourad B. was not present at the hearing on Friday. He has so far invoked his right to remain silent, but he plans to give a statement, according to his lawyer.
The investigation is largely complete, the OM said in its update. Witnesses and those affected by the tragedy are still being interviewed, including relatives of the victims who died. The Public Prosecution Service commissioned a digital reconstruction of the arson and the explosion. The Dutch Forensics Institute still needs a few months to be able to present its results. A behavioral investigation is also being conducted to evaluate the main suspect, Moshtag B.
The two prosecutors were unnerved that “the entire criminal file” had apparently been leaked to the press in the run-up to the hearing. They said it is impossible to determine how and by whom. They pointed out that leaking case file documents adds “extra suffering” to victims and relatives. “In this way, they are confronted with very detailed investigation findings of which they were not yet aware.” Several lawyers, including those representing surviving family, also expressed their disapproval of the leaking.
It also causes extra suffering to the criminals who can't pretend that they are the victims, as they usually do. It also makes it difficult for far-left judges to let the criminals off with a light or non-existent sentence.
The Public Prosecution Service asked the court to extend the pre-trial detention of the four suspects. The district court can order criminal suspects to serve up to 90 days of detention at a time, which is able to be extended as the trial date draws nearer.
The criminal trial concerning the explosion will not be heard until next year. The court in The Hague shared what is currently the schedule for the coming months during the hearing.
The OM stated that they needed another six months to finish the criminal file. The suspect’s lawyers also have different investigation wishes.
The next hearing, which is also a preliminary hearing, is on May 26. Another hearing will follow this in August, and then it will be considered whether all parties are ready to begin the trial.
Many people and journalists were present during the preliminary hearing on Friday. Three video rooms were installed at the court so that all the visitors could follow the hearing. 
London is unsafe – Russian Embassy
The Russian Embassy in London has warned tourists visiting the UK capital of a spike in criminal activity in the city. The increase is attributed to ongoing economic challenges and the migration crisis, the embassy has said.
The British capital has seen a steady increase in the crime rate since the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions were lifted, data tracked by local police shows. The number of crimes in the category of ‘theft’ alone surged nearly 40% in three years through the end of 2024.
“With the ongoing ‘cost of living crisis’ and a massive influx of migrants... the UK is being challenged with a surge in street crimes, from theft of personal property to knife and acid attacks which have become more frequent in recent years,” the Russian Embassy said in a statement released on Friday.
The mission warned that attacks of this kind could “result in serious injury and, in some cases, lead to fatal outcomes,” adding that most cases of cell phone theft are commonly recorded in tourist areas in central London.
According to the Metropolitan Police Service’s Crime Dashboard, the number of thefts in the capital has been on the rise across all 32 boroughs. Last year, the police registered a total of 330,989 thefts, compared to 282,074 and 242,698 in 2023 and 2022, respectively.
Britain has faced growing pressure on living standards in recent years. Amid a historic decline in quality of life, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said earlier this week that the “United Kingdom is not a high-wage nor a high-welfare country, leaving millions trapped between low wages and inadequate support.”
The UK has also been struggling with illegal migration for years, with successive prime ministers pledging to take action to address the problem. A study conducted by private utility firm Thames Water found that more than half of illegal migrants entering the country are living in the capital.
And how many of them are living on welfare, or on what they can steal, or both?
According to Grok, Moscow has a lower violent crime rate and a higher safety index than London.
While in Grok I asked about churches in the two great cities. Moscow clearly won in numbers, but is also growing rapidly in numbers, particularly in the suburbs. London, on the other hand, is closing or repurposing churches and not building many new buildings in the suburbs.
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