Israel: Sweden Democrats must apologise for the Holocaust

Published November 12, 2024 – By Editorial staff
The picture shows SD's Alexander Christiansson kneeling in front of laughing Jewish settlers in May this year. On the right is Israel's ambassador to Sweden, Ziv Nevo Kulman.

Israel is now demanding that the Sweden Democrats (SD) apologise for the party's ‘historical links to anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial’.

The demand was made by Israel's ambassador to Sweden, Ziv Nevo Kulman, who believes that such an apology is an important gesture to promote reconciliation and a prerequisite for a more open dialogue between the Sweden Democrats and the Jewish state.

In an interview with Schibsted-owned Aftonbladet's political editor Anders Lindberg, Israel's ambassador Kulman clarifies that Tel Aviv's official stance on the Sweden Democrats remains unchanged: the Israeli government will have no cooperation whatsoever with the anti-immigration Swedish party.

In the interview, the ambassador says that while the Sweden Democrats have repeatedly shown their support for Israel on issues related to the Middle East conflict, concerns remain about the party's background.

According to Kulman, an official apology from the SD would show "a willingness to acknowledge historical mistakes".

– Our policy towards far-right parties with Nazi roots has not changed, he says.

The Sweden Democrats have long worked to distance themselves from their alleged anti-Semitic history, and the party now has a number of representatives who are very vocal in their support for Israel and the Jewish diaspora at every opportunity.

This was particularly evident in May 2024, when the party's Alexander Christiansson knelt down in front of a group of Jewish settlers at the annual Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast event.

"Must fight antisemitism"

The Israeli side stresses that its relations with the SD will remain reserved until an apology and concrete measures are taken.

– But (the SD) definitely needs to do a lot of soul-searching about its own past. They need to apologise for everything they did, to the victims of the Holocaust and to the memory of the Holocaust, and they definitely need to think about a future where they do more to fight anti-Semitism. It's a long process, says Kulman.

Israel's demands have provoked reactions in Swedish politics, not least from representatives of the Sweden Democrats themselves. The party's MP, Josef Fransson, was highly critical in a post on X.

English translation of above tweet: But what is this nonsense? Is it the SD as a legal entity that should apologise for what a minority of members thought or did 30 years ago? Because if it is the legal entity that should apologise, it might be worth pointing out that there never was one...

Several opinion leaders have raised the question of whether a modern political party should have to answer for its history when the party has explicitly distanced itself from past positions and is actively working for a different agenda today.

The leadership of the Sweden Democrats has not yet responded directly to this demand, but the party has on several occasions emphasised its support for Israel and its wars in the region.

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Syrian man convicted of rape remains in Sweden six years after deportation order

Migrant violence

Published yesterday 7:52 pm – By Editorial staff
The tent at the Emmaboda Festival 2017 where the Syrian migrant Noraldin Alhamamy, now known as "Emil Jordensson," raped a 15-year-old girl.---**Context note:** Emmaboda Festival is a music festival held in Emmaboda, a small town in southern Sweden. The case refers to a criminal incident that occurred at the festival in 2017.

A migrant who was sentenced to deportation for aggravated rape of a 15-year-old girl at a music festival in 2017 is still in Sweden. During this time, the 30-year-old has committed new crimes and ran as a candidate in the Swedish church elections this summer. Now Swedish Migration Minister Johan Forssell calls the situation "sick" and promises legislative changes.

The 30-year-old Syrian citizen Noraldin Alhamamy came to Sweden in 2015 and received a permanent residence permit in the fall of 2016. Just six days before that decision, he was convicted of his first crime in the country: sexual molestation, reports Fria Tider.

In the summer of 2017, he committed the crime that would lead to deportation. At the Emmaboda Festival in southern Sweden, he raped a 15-year-old girl in her tent. He threatened her with a knife and covered her mouth during the assault. The girl developed post-traumatic stress disorder and has described how she lives in constant fear and anxiety.

He has destroyed my life, the girl said during the trial.

The man, who now goes by the name Emil Jordensson, was sentenced to two years and eight months in prison and deportation with a ten-year entry ban. However, the deportation has not been carried out because he has claimed several obstacles to enforcement.

Claimed conversion and military service

First, he claimed that he risked being called up for military service in the Syrian army. Later, he claimed that he had converted to Christianity, which he argued would put him in danger in his home country. His case has been heard in the Migration Court of Appeal and has become precedent-setting for other courts. Despite being denied refugee status due to the severity of his crime, he remains in Sweden more than six years after the verdict.

During this time, he has committed additional crimes. Last year, he was convicted of aggravated assault against a public official after making a revenge visit to a police officer who had arrested him, as well as for assaulting his wife, car theft, and harassment. The crimes were deemed to have been committed during a psychosis and he was sentenced to probation with supervision.

This summer, it was revealed in the regional newspaper Smålandsposten that the man was running as a candidate in the Church elections, which was possible because he is registered in the Swedish population register. He withdrew his candidacy after the revelation.

New legislation planned

It is of course sick. It is completely unacceptable, says Migration Minister Johan Forssell to the Bonnier newspaper Expressen.

The government will propose a new law called "tolerated stay" to handle people in this situation. They will then not receive temporary residence permits, be prohibited from leaving a certain area, have reporting obligations, and not be able to access Swedish welfare or register in the population register.

The man has been in detention since September after the Swedish Migration Agency decided that he cannot be held in regular detention due to his criminal record.

25 years since the murder of Daniel Wretström

Migrant violence

Updated November 9, 2025, Published November 9, 2025 – By Editorial staff
The artist Markus Andersson holds up a painting of Daniel Wretström, who became a victim and symbol of anti-Swedish violence.

The young nationalist Daniel Wretström was brutally assaulted and stabbed to death in a ditch on December 9, 2000, in Salem, a suburb of Stockholm, Sweden, by a gang of immigrants.

The murderer Khaled Odeh, who slit the throat of the 17-year-old, and his four accomplices all escaped prison sentences, and the murder has become symbolic of the increased anti-Swedish violence in Sweden.

Now a memorial demonstration is being held on December 6, 25 years after his murder, which aroused strong revulsion among young Swedes.

The murder of Wretström occurred at a time when Swedish media the year before had exposed 62 people as nazis and a "threat to democracy." Prime Minister Göran Persson and other leading Social Democrats promised in major media statements the same year as the murder to "crush" the racists.

Mass immigration to Sweden had at that time seriously begun to affect the country's demographic composition, creating deep ethnic and cultural divisions while the pursued policy was driven in the direction of systematically transforming one of the world's most homogeneous countries into a multicultural society.

The policy, which was declared by Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme as early as 1975 and which from the 1990s was seriously driven from the highest political level, contributed to increased insecurity and became the starting point for the gang violence that has today spiraled out of control and made Sweden one of Europe's most unsafe countries.

The counter-reaction, primarily among Sweden's youth who were earliest affected by the insecurity and societal transformation, became an increased nationalism. The development gained momentum in a national movement that encompassed both politics, culture, music and other expressions with emphasis on patriotism, the preservation of Swedishness and an increased national self-awareness with demands to stop mass immigration.

Swedish mass media were a driving force in the same direction as the government with the transformation of Sweden toward multiculturalism and contributed to demonizing all expressions and reactions against this direction, which promoted subcultures and diminished the legitimacy of all forms of resistance. The mass media's actions also contributed to holding back nationalist parties like the Sweden Democrats in public opinion and drove unserious individuals into organizations working for national self-preservation.

Young Swedes who reacted against the development lacked channels and were demonized as "xenophobic," which strongly drove polarization and spurred young immigrants to threats and acts of violence against Swedes.

The young nationalist Daniel Wretström became a victim of the political and media campaign and was murdered in Salem, a Stockholm suburb, which came to be symbolic of the increased anti-Swedish violence in Sweden. In his memory, a torch-lit procession was organized and the so-called Salem Demonstration gathered thousands of Swedes annually during the early 2000s, primarily younger people.

On December 6, 25 years after the murder, a demonstration is once again being arranged to honor the memory of the murdered young nationalist. The organizer writes on their website that the demonstration is politically independent. As with the demonstrations of the 2000s, participants gather at Rönninge commuter train station to march to the place where Wretström lost his life.

Bullying doubled in Sweden – one in six girls affected

Published November 8, 2025 – By Editorial staff

Three students in every classroom are estimated to be victims of bullying, according to a new report from Friends, a Swedish anti-bullying organization. The organization is now raising the alarm that Sweden has the worst record in the Nordic region and argues that the government's school reform lacks the preventive measures needed to reverse the trend.

The new Friends report is based on a survey conducted by Novus during spring, in which 1,026 students aged 9-16 (grades 4-9) participated. The findings show that bullying continues to be a widespread problem in Swedish schools. Six out of ten students report having experienced some form of harassment, threats, or violence this year.

On average, three students per class are victims of bullying, and four out of ten do not feel comfortable at school. Although the majority of students believe that teachers take action against bullying, one in three still feel that adults turn a blind eye. One in four affected students also report that they lack a trusted adult at school.

According to Maja Frankel, secretary general of Friends, bullying in Sweden has doubled over the past decade.

We have the worst record in the Nordic region. We don't prioritize children's rights highly enough. If we want to turn this around, schools need resources to invest time in prevention – before something happens, not when it's too late. That costs money. We need more trusted adults in schools, says Maja Frankel in Nyhetsmorgon, a Swedish morning news program.

Girls most affected

Girls are particularly affected, with one in six girls experiencing bullying compared to one in nine boys. There are also differences in how they are affected: girls are more exposed to relational bullying – such as social exclusion, spreading rumors, peer pressure, or harassment of a sexual nature. Boys are more exposed to physical violence.

The Swedish government is currently implementing one of the largest reforms in the country's education system in thirty years, but Friends argues that the proposals fall short and lack preventive measures.

The proposals we're seeing right now are truly a betrayal of children. It's not about forcing safety through punishment or achieving better results through stricter measures. It's about protecting children and building warm, secure relationships, says Frankel.

Swedish gang charged with serious crimes against people with disabilities

Deteriorating safety

Published November 7, 2025 – By Editorial staff
Six people are being prosecuted at Värmland District Court in Sweden for serious crimes including aggravated rape.

Six young men and women are being prosecuted at Värmland District Court in Sweden, suspected of systematically exploiting and abusing people with intellectual disabilities. The charges include serious sexual offenses and extensive fraud.

The prosecutor describes the crimes as planned and characterized by particular ruthlessness and brutality. The indictment covers three men and three women aged 20–25, residing in the Swedish cities of Karlstad, Eskilstuna, Örebro, and Örnsköldsvik.

They are suspected of jointly contacting their victims via the internet, forcing them to perform sexual acts on themselves, and then filming, distributing, and ridiculing the material.

According to Senior Prosecutor Lena Bohlin, the crimes were not committed for personal sexual gratification, but with the intent to sexually humiliate. She states that the victims were in a particularly vulnerable situation due to their disabilities, and that the abuse was both repeated and degrading.

The indictment reveals that several of the accused participated simultaneously in each incident and encouraged the victims to perform acts such as penetrating themselves with various objects.

The videos were then shared within the group, often accompanied by laughter and derogatory comments.

— I have classified several incidents as serious crimes, partly because there are multiple perpetrators and because the criminality was part of a systematic violation of the victims' sexual integrity. Many of the acts also contain degrading elements, says prosecutor Lena Bohlin in a press release.

Systematic and well-planned

In addition to the sexual offenses, several of the suspects are charged with serious fraud. Through so-called romance scams, the victims were manipulated into transferring large sums of money – sometimes over €85,000 – under the pretense of being in a romantic relationship.

The scheme is described as well-planned and part of a larger systematic pattern. According to the indictment, the victims lacked the ability to understand the seriousness of the situation and to protect themselves from the manipulation.

Initially, investigators suspected a connection between the fraud crimes and the sexual offenses.

— But as the investigation has progressed, we can see that the connection is weak. There is a connection between one of the plaintiffs in the sexual crimes and one fraud case, but otherwise there are no connections, says Lena Bohlin.

In the extensive preliminary investigation, police have secured videos, chats, and other digital evidence showing how the victims were instructed, threatened, and ridiculed.

The investigation began in Eskilstuna in March 2025, after a phone containing the material was found by police. All six suspects deny the charges, despite what the prosecutor describes as strong evidence.

The main trial will begin on November 13 at Värmland District Court and is expected to last 13 days. Several of the hearings with the plaintiffs will be conducted via video link due to their special needs.

Case number at Värmland District Court: B 1434-25.

The defendants

Three women, aged 24–25, and three men, aged 21–24.
Suspected of, among other things:

  • Aggravated rape
  • Aggravated sexual assault
  • Aggravated sexual molestation
  • Aggravated fraud