Sweden says Iran was behind thousands of text messages calling for revenge over Quran burnings

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Swedish authorities accused Iran on Tuesday of being answerable for hundreds of textual content messages that had been despatched to individuals within the Scandinavian nation calling for revenge over the burnings of Islam’s holy book in 2023.

Based on officers in Stockholm, the cyberattack was carried out by Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, which hacked an SMS service and despatched “some 15,000 textual content messages in Swedish” over the string of public burnings of the Quran that happened over a number of months in the summertime of 2023.

Senior prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist mentioned a preliminary investigation by Sweden’s SAPO home safety company confirmed “it was the Iranian state by way of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC, that carried out a knowledge breach at a Swedish firm that runs a serious SMS service.”

The Swedish firm was not named. There was no instant remark from Iranian authorities on the accusations from Sweden.

In August 2023, Swedish media reported that numerous individuals in Sweden had acquired textual content messages in Swedish calling for revenge in opposition to individuals who had been burning the Quran, Ljungqvist mentioned, including that the sender of the messages was “a bunch calling itself the Anzu group.”

Swedish broadcaster SVT revealed a photograph of a textual content message, saying that “those that desecrated the Quran will need to have their work coated in ashes” and calling Swedes “demons.”

The protests had been held below the liberty of speech act, which is protected below the Swedish structure. The rallies had been authorised by police. Nonetheless, the incidents left Sweden torn between its dedication to free speech and its respect for non secular minorities.

The conflict of elementary rules had sophisticated Sweden’s want to affix NATO, an growth that gained urgency after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine however wanted the approval of all alliance members.

Turkey and its President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had briefly blocked Sweden’s accession, citing causes together with anti-Turkish and anti-Islamic protests in Stockholm however Sweden lastly grew to become a NATO member in March.

On the time, the Swedish authorities mentioned it “strongly rejects the Islamophobic act dedicated by people in Sweden,” including that the desecrations didn’t replicate the nation’s stand.

In July final yr, Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued an announcement saying that “the insult to the Holy Quran in Sweden is a bitter, conspiratorial, harmful occasion” and that the desecrations have “created emotions of hatred and enmity” in Muslim nations towards the individuals burning the Quran and their governments.

In a separate assertion, SAPO’s operational supervisor Fredrik Hallström mentioned Tuesday the textual content messages ‘ intent was to additionally “paint the picture of Sweden as an Islamophobic nation and create division in society.”

He accused “overseas powers” of searching for to “exploit vulnerabilities” and mentioned they had been “now appearing an increasing number of aggressively, and it is a improvement that’s more likely to escalate.” He didn’t title any particular nation.

In the meantime, Sweden’ justice minister, Gunnar Strömmer, instructed Swedish information company TT “{that a} state actor, on this case Iran, in keeping with (SAPO’s) evaluation is behind an motion that goals to destabilize Sweden or enhance polarization in our nation is after all very severe.”

There isn’t any legislation in Sweden particularly prohibiting the burning or desecration of the Quran or different non secular texts. Like many Western international locations, Sweden doesn’t have any blasphemy legal guidelines.

“For the reason that actors are appearing for a overseas energy, on this case Iran, we make the evaluation that the circumstances for prosecution overseas or extradition to Sweden are missing for the individuals suspected of being behind the breach, “Ljungqvist mentioned.

Ljungqvist who’s with the Sweden’s high prosecution authority mentioned though the preliminary investigation has been closed, it “doesn’t imply that the suspected hackers have been fully written off” and that the probe could possibly be reopened.

Sweden’s home safety company in Might accused Iran of using established criminal networks in Sweden as a proxy to focus on Israeli or Jewish pursuits within the Scandinavian nation.

Iran’s Embassy in Sweden couldn’t be reached for a touch upon Tuesday.

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Related Press author Jari Tanner in Helsinki contributed to this report.