Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Wednesday condemned an “attempted attack” on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm after a bomb squad destroyed an object found outside the building.
Police said a “live” device had been discovered by staff on embassy grounds on Wednesday, calling it a “dangerous object” but did not say what it was.
“This is very serious. The attempted attack on the embassy is an attack on both the people working at the embassy and Sweden,” Kristersson said in a social media post, adding that police and the Swedish Security Police ” They added that they were investigating who was responsible.
The Prime Minister added that surveillance of Swedish embassies and Jewish facilities had been increased.
After the area around the object was cordoned off, the National Bomb Disposal Squad was called to the scene and made the decision to destroy the object. A police spokesperson said: “In our judgment it was a live broadcast.”
Swedish tabloids Expressen and Aftonbladet, citing unidentified sources, reported that it was a grenade, but Aftonbladet said the bullet had been thrown over the fence surrounding the mission and that it had been fired near a building. He said it fell to the ground.
Ziv Nebo Kurman, Israel’s ambassador to Sweden, said the embassy and its staff had been subjected to an “attempted attack.”
“We will not be intimidated by terrorism,” Kullman added.
In late October, the Swedish government pledged 10 million krona ($1 million) to beef up security at Jewish institutions and congregations in response to rising anti-Semitism in the wake of the Israel-Gaza war.
In early December, Kristersson took part in a march against anti-Semitism in Stockholm.
Swedish police said at the time that they had received 120 reports of anti-Semitic crimes since the outbreak of the war.
Reuters and Agence France-Presse contributed to this report
