Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has announced his country's intention to request that the European Union classify Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization.
Several Violent Incidents
This move comes in response to a series of violent incidents linked to the IRGC, which has already been designated as a terrorist entity by Canada.
The Swedish Security Service, known as Sapo, has accused Iran of recruiting members from Swedish criminal gangs to carry out acts of violence within the country. This allegation has been firmly denied by Iranian officials.
"We want Sweden to seriously address, along with other EU countries, the incredibly problematic connection between the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its destructive role in the Middle East, as well as its increasingly intense actions in various European countries, including Sweden," Kristersson stated in an interview with the daily newspaper Expressen, according to Ziare.
A Grenade Discovered Near Embassy
The IRGC is a significant branch of Iran’s armed forces, with its officers holding key positions within the Iranian government.
The group's actions have increasingly raised concerns in Sweden, especially following multiple attacks on Israeli interests in the country. In early October, gunfire was directed at the Israeli embassy in Stockholm, although no injuries were reported. Such incidents have escalated since the outbreak of war in Gaza in October 2023.
In addition to the embassy shooting, Swedish authorities have dealt with other alarming events. A grenade was discovered near the embassy in February, which the Israeli ambassador deemed a direct attempt at an attack.
There have also been reports of gunfire outside the embassy, prompting heightened security measures around Israeli facilities in Sweden.
Furthermore, two attacks targeting an Israeli military technology company occurred in the past six months.
Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter reported that documents from the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad indicated that the leaders of rival criminal networks in Sweden had been recruited by Iran, intensifying fears over Tehran's influence in Europe.
