The Iranian-backed network reportedly hires child mercenaries from mainly immigrant community gangs in European countries such as Sweden and Norway to attack targets in Israel.
According to report According to Bloomberg, there have been at least three incidents this year, including an attempted attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm by a 15-year-old and two incidents at the facility of Israeli defense company Elbit Systems in Gothenburg. The incident involved a shooting by a 13-year-old. The homemade bomb attempts by the –year-old boy and the 16-year-old were all orchestrated by operatives loyal to Tehran's Islamist regime.
Petter Nessel, a senior researcher at the Norwegian Defense Research Institute (FFI), told the press that Iranian-linked operatives use platforms such as Telegram, TikTok and WhatsApp to recruit criminals and target Israeli targets. He said he was giving instructions to carry out the attack.
Prices start at around 1,500 euros ($1,560/1,240 pounds) for murders, and petrol bomb attacks can be bought for as little as 120 euros, but Nesser said the cheaper operations “have signs of amateurism”. did.
While some of the mercenaries may have been motivated by hostility towards Israel over the Gaza conflict, many appear to have simply come to the mercenaries for a payday, and earlier this year the Swedish Security Service However, there are cases where this is not the case.” Either they realize that they are acting on behalf of a foreign power, or they don't. ”
Iran's apparent interest in focusing on employing children to do its dirty work comes as a result of the widespread use of young people, typically from immigrant communities, in criminal organizations in the Nordic countries. It's emerging as a trend.
Countries such as Sweden and Norway do not require children under the age of 15 to be sent to prison, increasing reliance on children. But both countries are considering amending these laws to stop gangs from exploiting children.
Earlier this year, the Danish government revealed that gangs in Copenhagen and other Danish cities were trying to import “child soldiers” from neighboring Sweden to carry out shootings and bombings in Denmark.
Denmark's Minister of Justice Peter Hummelgaard said: “There are conflicts going on between people who are sitting in Iraq, Lebanon, Dubai, Turkey and all sorts of other exciting places and clashing with each other in the streets of Denmark. He’s a minion.”
Sweden was once one of the most peaceful countries in all of Europe, but mass immigration has fundamentally changed the country, with one in five citizens now foreign-born. This has coincided with an increase in gang crime, particularly from downtrodden immigrant communities, with frequent shootings and bombings.
According to report Earlier this year, Swedish police announced that around 14,000 people in Sweden are considered active gang members, and a further 48,000 are associated with various criminal network groups.
Following the failure of the open border policy, Swedes supported a center-right coalition in 2022 that focused on reducing immigration to the country. More people are expected to leave Sweden than enter the country this year, with Iraqis, Syrians and Somalis topping the list of groups leaving the country.
