A Danish court yesterday sentenced two Swedish citizens to 12 and 14 years in prison respectively for a 2024 grenade attack near Israel’s embassy in Copenhagen, after convicting them of terrorism and attempted murder, AFP reported.
The men, now aged 18 and 21, threw two grenades that damaged the terrace of a residence next to the mission in the upscale Hellerup district in the early hours of October 2,2024, but caused no injuries. They will be expelled to Sweden after serving their terms, authorities said.
“The two men threw the grenades with the intention of seriously frightening the Israeli and Danish populations – the attack therefore constitutes a terrorist act,” a police statement said.
Judges found that the pair, who were aged 16 and 18 at the time, had acted together after agreeing with unidentified accomplices linked to a Swedish criminal network.
The younger defendant, whose DNA was found on one of the grenades, admitted during the trial to membership in Sweden’s Foxtrot gang.
“The criminal network acted as the armed wing of a Middle Eastern terrorist organisation in Denmark, where the Israeli embassy had been designated as the target of the attack,” prosecutor Søren Harbo said.
Swedish intelligence has previously alleged that Iran sought to recruit local criminal gangs to attack Israeli targets. The Islamic Republic denies the claim.
Tehran has been behind a series of terrorist attacks carried out by criminal gangs targeting Israeli embassies in Europe, including Sweden, since the Hamas-led attacks on October 7 2023, according to Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency..
To get more news, click here to sign up for our free daily newsletter.