Suspected Hand Grenade Attack on Police Station in Malmo, Sweden

The New Normal - Swedish Police under fire

FILE PHOTO © Johan Nilsson / Reuters

A loud bang has been heard at the police station in the Swedish city of Malmo. The explosion was caused by a hand grenade, according to news reports.

"The place is locked off and the bombing group is on its way," police spokeswoman Anna Goransson was quoted as saying by Aftonbladet.

The alleged attack happened shortly after 9pm local time in the courtyard of the police station. "Fortunately, no people have been injured, but cars, I cannot say how many, have been damaged," Goransson told reporters.

Authorities have yet to confirm what caused the explosion, but local media are reporting that a hand grenade was used.

Police have not confirmed any arrests so far, but Aftonbladet's photographer said two people have been taken into custody. The detonation took place just as the two suspects approached the station, according to reports.

Police have been placed on high alert with armed officers deployed to strategic locations around Malmo.

As the investigation gets underway, local media and authorities have sketched possible connections with a recent spate of attacks on police stations in Sweden. On December 29, a police car was destroyed outside a police station in Malmo. In October, a powerful explosion outside the police station in Helsingborg also caused significant material damage. 

Following Wednesday night's attack, the Police Association tweeted that "attacks against police must end."

Yeah, I'm sure that will help!

Regional police chief Carina Persson called the attack "completely unacceptable," after visiting the scene of the explosion. "We must continue to work intensively in the fight against the serious crime," she said, vowing to punish the perpetrators.

Earlier, Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Lofven said deploying the military to clamp down on organized and violent crime remained an option, local media reported.

While authorities in Malmo have yet to confirm any links to terrorism, Sweden's Security Police (SAPO) warned that "terrorism levels in Sweden remain at an elevated level." The violent Islamist extremism currently represents the most significant threat to Sweden, SAPO's Anders Thornberg said referring to the most recent terror threat evaluation conducted by the National Center for Terrorism Assessment. "Lonely perpetrators" continue to pose the biggest terrorist threat. "The violent extremist environment in Sweden currently comprise about 3000 hot actors," he said. In a society where "radicalization can be done very quickly," perpetrators can evade the security radar, Thornberg noted.

And then there are the many gangs, mainly migrants and Muslim immigrants responsible for the dramatic increase in rapes, gang-rapes, extortions and murders in Sweden. It was in this context that Lofven mentioned the military as a possibility.

But 3000 hot actors???!!! What is being done to cool them down or get rid of them? Are they merely being watched, because Sweden does not have enough police to watch 3000 hot actors, not even close. Are prisons segregating radicalized Muslims from the rest of the population? If not, they are just breeding grounds for Islamic Insanity.

What's the plan here, Stefan?

Swedish Police Face Looming Crisis as Cops Quit While No-Go Zones Increase

Swedish police lose control amid refugee crisis

as number of 'no-go zones' rises to 55

A firefighter attempts to extinguish a fire which had damaged cars after the vehicles had been set alight, in Malmo, Sweden, August 15, 2016. 

The inflow of asylum seekers in Sweden, a country with one of the most liberal laws towards refugees, is putting an increasing strain on the country's police. There are now reportedly 55 areas in the country, where the law is not fully upheld.

Dubbed “no-go zones” in some media reports, there are now 55 areas in Swedish cities, where the police have significant problems in tackling crime. They are divided into three categories depending on how significant the risk to officers working there is.

The number has risen from 50 in February, when the police last gave a comprehensive report on the issue, and last week, when the law enforcement agency gave an update. According to media reports, the service is facing a major crisis of self-confidence, with as many as three officers on average asking to resign on a daily basis. Internal polls say four officers out of five have been considering a change of profession lately.

“We have a major crisis. Many colleagues are choosing to quit,” police officer Peter Larsson told the Norwegian broadcaster NRK. “A drastically worsened working environment means many colleagues are now looking for other work.”

If officers go into a no-go zone, they risk being verbally attacked or pelted with stones. Patrol cars may be set ablaze or stolen.

Crime rates in the blacklisted areas are on the rise, the police report said. The offenses range from vandalism to drug crimes to sex assaults and gun violence. One particular example is Malmo, Sweden's third-largest city, where more than 70 cars were set on fire by arsonists over several days. The police managed to arrest only one suspect while investigating those attacks.

Ironically, after the Hungarian government used the existence of no-go zones in Europe to promote its cause for an upcoming referendum on EU quotas, the Swedish embassy rebuked it saying that no such areas existed in their country.

"It is important to us that accurate information about Sweden is given to the citizens of Hungary. The embassy has therefore had reason to object sharply to a map of Europe with red markings in a handful of member states, including Sweden, in which the Hungarian government claims that so-called 'no-go zones' exist, where police and the state have no control over citizens' safety," Anna Boda, the Deputy Head of the Swedish diplomatic mission in Budapest told The Local.

'No-Go' zones may be overstating some of the 55 areas mentioned by the Swedish police, but there is a reason why police are abandoning their trade. Sweden's government had better listen to their police and do something, or there will be absolute chaos in the streets.

“No-go zone” is a loaded term with no clear definition and caused division earlier amid the ongoing refugee crisis in Europe. Last year Paris wanted to sue Fox New for a report, which said no-go zones existed in the French capital.

France has already deployed its military to patrol the streets of Paris. So far, however, there has been more unrest from labour protesters than from Muslim enclaves. The government certainly would play down any 'no-go zone' revelations because tourism is vital to the French economy.

One thing seems clear - neither the Swedish, nor the French governments, are willing to deal with the truth.