Hand grenades thrown near Israeli embassy in Copenhagen

In separate incident, Swedish police launch investigation after shots fired at Israeli embassy in Stockholm

Police in Denmark and Sweden are investigating after hand grenades were thrown near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen and shots were fired at the Israeli embassy in Stockholm on Tuesday night and the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Three Swedish men were arrested in the Danish capital on Wednesday on suspicion of involvement in two explosions near the Israeli embassy at 3.20am in the Copenhagen district of Hellerup.

In a separate incident, shortly before 6pm on Tuesday, police in Stockholm attended the Israeli embassy on Strandvägen after reports of a loud bang. Police confirmed the embassy was hit by bullets and have launched an investigation into serious weapons offences. Nobody was injured.

The explosions in Copenhagen were believed to have been caused by hand grenades that damaged a building about 100 metres from the Israeli embassy. Nobody was injured.

Two men were arrested at Copenhagen central station on a train headed for the Danish town of Padborg. A third man was arrested near the embassy. The men arrested on the train were expected to attend a hearing on Thursday where they will be charged with possession of weapons.

The three men were aged 15 to 20, police said, adding that it was too early to say anything about a motive or whether they acted alone.

“Our investigation shows that the blasts likely were caused by hand grenades,” said Jens Jespersen, a spokesperson for Copenhagen police. He said it was unclear whether the Israeli embassy was the target.

The Danish justice minister, Peter Hummelgaard, said the incident was “inherently serious”. He said it was too early to say anything about a possible motive but that the investigation would look at potential connections to Iran and possible links to the incident in Stockholm.

Swedish police declined to comment on a possible motivation behind the shooting, as no arrests have been made. A spokesperson said: “The criminal investigation into the shooting at the Israeli embassy is ongoing in full force with several investigative measures to find the perpetrator(s).”

In late January, the Israeli embassy in Stockholm was sealed off after what was described as “a dangerous object” was found on its grounds. Swedish media said the object was a hand grenade.

The Swedish justice minister, Gunnar Strömmer, said: “I look with severity on the shooting at Israel’s embassy in Stockholm last night and the events reported from Copenhagen this morning.”

Swedish security police (Säpo) declined to comment.

Contributor

Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
Suspect arrested in Sweden after Britons found dead in burnt-out car
Person held on suspicion of aiding and abetting murder of Londoners Farooq Abdulrazak and Juan Cifuentes

Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent

29, Aug, 2024 @10:44 AM

Article image
Hungary approves Sweden joining Nato after months of delays
Yes vote comes nearly two years after historically neutral country applied to join military alliance

Miranda Bryant in Stockholm

26, Feb, 2024 @6:50 PM

Article image
Students across Europe hold Gaza war protests in run-up to UN vote on Palestinian statehood
Police arrested dozens of people in Amsterdam, with university occupations continuing in Netherlands, Belgium and Spain

Ashifa Kassam and Jennifer Rankin

09, May, 2024 @1:57 PM

Article image
Giorgia Meloni plans Lebanon visit as fears grow for UN peacekeeping troops
Italian PM demands security guarantees for her country’s Unifil troops after series of attacks by Israel

Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor and Angela Giuffrida in Rome

15, Oct, 2024 @1:28 PM

Article image
EU ministers warned not to relax support for Ukraine amid requests for air defence aid
Member states warned at meeting not to be complacent but ministers stop short of pledging Patriot missiles

Jennifer Rankin in Brussels

22, Apr, 2024 @3:35 PM

Article image
Nord Stream 1: first underwater images reveal devastating damage
Underwater drone reveals long tears in seabed and 50 metres of pipeline missing with Danish police blaming ‘powerful explosions’

Philip Oltermann in Berlin

18, Oct, 2022 @12:01 PM

Article image
Swedish children to start school a year earlier in move away from play
Compulsory preschool year for six-year-olds to be replaced with extra year in primary school from 2028

Miranda Bryant Nordic correspondent

19, Sep, 2024 @4:00 AM

Article image
Six EU states overtake UK Covid vaccination rates as Britain’s rollout slows
Malta, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Denmark and Ireland overtake UK in fully jabbed percentages

Jon Henley Europe correspondent

06, Aug, 2021 @1:30 PM

Article image
Sweden and Finland to formally submit Nato bids ‘hand in hand’
Announcement at joint press conference comes as Turkey maintains it will not support the applications

Jon Henley Europe correspondent

18, May, 2022 @5:25 AM

Article image
Leftwing Nordic nations provide ‘ray of hope’ in Europe
Left-leaning parties in Finland, Sweden, and Denmark see surge in support in Euro-elections, countering rightwing popularity in France and Germany

Lisa O'Carroll in Brussels

11, Jun, 2024 @7:44 PM