Swedish police have arrested three men outside of the Israeli embassy in Stockholm on suspicion of preparing to commit violent crime.
The three men were arrested by police earlier this evening near the embassy, but not inside, Swedish police confirmed.
Spokesperson for the police force, Susanna Rinaldo, said: ‘We are unable to comment on the potential motive.’
The three men are suspected to have been planning an attack on the embassy, according to unnamed sources cited by Swedish broadcaster TV4.
Just a matter of months ago, in October, the country’s police force increased security around Israeli embassies in both Stockholm and Copenhagen following a series attacks.
Shots had been fired at Stockholm’s embassy in one incident in early October, but nobody was injured.
And little more than a day later, two explosions were reported near the embassy in central Copenhagen.
Two Swedish teenagers, aged 16 and 19, were arrested and charged with possessing hand grenades and detonating them near the embassy.
Sweden’s security service Sapo went onto claim that Iran may have been involved in the attacks, though they admitted ‘this was an assumption rather than pure knowledge.’
At the beginning of 2024, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson promised to tighten surveillance of Jewish institutions in the nation after a ‘dangerous object’ was found outside the Stockholm embassy.