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Drunken Swedish soldiers in armed Kosovo kerfuffle

Published: 3 Jul 09 07:59 CET | Double click on a word to get a translation
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/20436/20090703/

A shot was fired when two drunken and armed Swedish soldiers got into a fight with local residents in Kosovo, prompting an investigation by Sweden’s Armed Forces.

The incident took place pn May 21st in the town of Gracanica, the Serbian enclave being guarded by Swedish soldiers as a part of the Nato-led Kosovo Force (KFOR).

The two soldiers were offered alcohol during a visit with locals, leaving their weapons unattended in their vehicle outside while they drank, the Värnpliktsnytt newspaper reports, citing information from tje Armed Forced investigation.

Attempts by the TT news agency to confirm the information regarding the unattended weapons were unsuccessful, although military spokesperson Roger Magnergård confirmed that the two soldiers had been sent home following reports from military police that the two were drunk when they returned to the Camp Victoria base.

After sharing drinks at the local’s house party, the Swedes then proceeded to a night club where they continued partying.

As the club was closing down, the Swedish soldiers got into a dispute with a local resident. The quarrel continued outside of the club, at which point a shot was fired from an unknown direction.

Despite one of the drunken soldiers being so intoxicated that he vomited, both Swedes readied themselves for combat, with at least one loading his rifle, according to the investigation.

The two soldiers were reassigned to the Life Guard’s international training unit. Attempts by Värnpliktsnytt to reach the head unit for a comment were unsuccessful.

TT/David Landes (news@thelocal.se)

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12:18 July 3, 2009 by Nemesis
Bloody idiots.

They are they there to keep the peace, not get drunk and get into trouble.

These two idiots should be brought home immediately, as tehya re a disgrace to the good soldiers of KFOR who are doing such a good job.
12:35 July 3, 2009 by ameribrit
Errr, they are home. But I agree about the "bloody idiots" part.
00:57 July 4, 2009 by jimmyjames
Who said Vikings were dead ?.....drink some grog...draw your sword....terrorize the local populace..... why stop there.....a little rape and pillage might have been in order. The Swedes love to portray themselves as so Liberal, more enlightened than us others, and all around more civilized....a little alcohol always brings out the true nature....amazing how alcohol always ends with violence and is legal but marijuana is the devil weed with its roots in hell....ever here of someone getting stoned and terrorizing folks ? More likely once stoned you want to listen to music,make love, and snack out....but pot is illegal.
10:47 July 4, 2009 by Leprehcaun
@ jimmyjames

They weren't terrorizing anyone; those ppl were shooting in the air and the KFOR are supposed to check if those ppl have licenses, they were drunk so their judgments sucked. They didn't hurt or rape anyone and they didn't pillage. There was no violence. The only mistake they made was doing that while drunk.

And pot should be illegal, you have stated the good things that my response to is; why the hell would you need drugs to do any of that? I have heard of my friend's brother who jumped off his balcony on the 8th floor because he was sure someone was hiding in his apartment trying to kill him. The side effects: confusion, paranoia, agitation, anxiety, racing heartbeat, short term memory loss, nausea and dizziness.
20:40 July 7, 2009 by spy
jimmyjames

The vikings are dead - the alpha gene was largely bred out of Swedish men years ago.

Plus I think many people would disagree with you that marijuana's only side effects are listening to music, making love and snacking.
15:00 July 8, 2009 by jimmyjames
" Spy " the only people who would disagree are individuals like 'ole " Leprechaun " ( hell with a monicker like that he must be smoking something ) who obviously have no real-life, continuous, marijuana experience. The example he sites, if true, was obviously an individual who was abusing some other drug ( sounds like "speed" or an hallucinogen) or had an underlying psychiatric problem that required medication. I lived and worked in Amsterdam, Holland for 5 years. AND NEVER, EVER, heard of anything evil, violent, or suicidal that was absolutely and solely attributable to marijuana. Close inspection of negative accounts ALWAYS one finds are the result of other underlying issues....these are never mentioned or investigated by people like "Leprehcaun". ( Use your real name unless your scared).
02:51 July 14, 2009 by lingonberrie
Anyone who uses any drug, or smokes marijuana or advocates the same, needs to have their head examined.

The ranting going on here is indicative of mental problems, and is full of arrogance.
11:50 July 14, 2009 by The Green Turtle
Damn, you Swedes need to lighten up!
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