STOCKHOLM, Sweden— “Sweden has been attacked. Everything points to a terrorist action,” Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said in a statement shortly after a deadly truck attack rocked Stockholm downtown on Friday afternoon.
At least three people are reported to have died and eight injured after an allegedly hijacked truck ran into a mega store in central Stockholm, according to the police.
“A truck has ran over people. We have initial information that people are injured. We are here to find out more,” said Towe Hägg at Stockholm Police Command Center.
Police has also confirmed that a shooting took place almost simultaneously at the Stockholm suburb of Fridhemsplan around 3 PM local time.
Journalist Martin Svenningsen who was at the site when the attack took place said that he saw a truck driving straight into a crowd at the Drottning Street at Åhléns City in downtown Stockholm.
“I saw at least three dead people, but there are probably more. It's a complete mess here,” he told Swedish state radio Ekot.
Per Thorell, station officer at the Norrmalm Police said that they regard the case as “a terrorist attack.”
“It is highly suspected to be a terrorist action. This is something that has happened in Europe before,” he told reporters referring to the last year’s fatal truck attack in Berlin.
According to several witnesses a man was taken into custody by police at Olof Palmes street, a short walk from the spot where the attack took place, daily Aftonbladet said.
The truck-driver has been detained but police has not confirmed his identity.
Sweden has largely been spared the recent terror actions that have hit European major cities over the past two decades.
Sweden is a member of the anti-ISIS coalition and has military advisors stationed in the Kurdistan Region. Prime Minister Löfven announced on his visit to Erbil in October last year that his government will increase the number of military personnel to 70 advisors.
Over 300 Swedes are presumed to have traveled to Iraq and Syria to join ISIS as foreign fighters, according to the director of the Swedish intelligence (SÄPO), Anders Thornberg, who earlier said that at least 100 Swedes are now confirmed to be ISIS recruits in the Middle East.
from Rudaw http://ift.tt/2oR8UkS
via Defense News
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