Afghanistan

The following articles have been tagged with "Afghanistan":

Ombudsman backs police on pepper spray at refugee wedding

National: 12 Mar 10
The Swedish Parliamentary Ombudsman has ruled that there is no case to answer for the police officers who interrupted a wedding to arrest a 24-year-old groom at Malmö city hall, using pepper spray on him in the process. READ »

Swede killed in Afghanistan

National: 12 Mar 10
A Swedish woman from Örebro in eastern Sweden was shot and killed in Kabul in January. The woman was visiting relatives in the Afghan capital. READ »

Support grows for Afghanistan troops

National: 17 Feb 10
Support for the military operation in Afghanistan has increased strongly since the death of two Swedish officers and a local interpreter on February 7th, a new poll shows. READ »

Liberals push for more Afghanistan troops

National: 12 Feb 10
The Liberal Party has argued that the Swedish contingent in Afghanistan is understaffed and wants the force to be strengthened by a further 100 soldiers. READ »

'We killed Swedish soldiers': Taliban

National: 11 Feb 10
The Taliban has claimed that it was behind the attack that killed two Swedish solders and their Afghan interpreter on Sunday. READ »

Sweden to send more troops to Afghanistan

National: 10 Feb 10
Sweden plans to reinforce its contingent of troops in Afghanistan with 30 soldiers to be sent from Karlsborg during next week. READ »

'Only good foreign soldier on Afghan soil is a dead one': Myrdal

Politics: 9 Feb 10
Swedish author and anti-war activist Jan Myrdal has sparked outrage following a public lecture in which he appeared to welcome the killing of Swedish, US and other soldiers. READ »

Three arrested for killing of Swedish soldiers

National: 9 Feb 10
Three men have been arrested in Afghanistan on suspicion of being connected to the the death of Swedish soldiers Johan Palmlöv and Gunnar Andersson near Mazar-e Sharif on Sunday. READ »

Swedish soldiers killed by 'Afghan police'

National: 8 Feb 10
Military police are conducting an investigation into reports that the two Swedish military officers killed in Afghanistan on Sunday were attacked by a police officer. READ »

Two Swedes killed in Afghanistan

National: 7 Feb 10
Two Swedish military officers and a local interpreter were killed on Sunday when their unit came under fire west of Mazar-e Sharif in Afghanistan. READ »

Swede awarded UN top job in Afghanistan

National: 28 Jan 10
Long-serving Swedish diplomat Staffan de Mistura has been appointed by UN chief Ban Ki-moon as his new envoy to Afghanistan. READ »

Kabul to Kiruna: a new life in the Arctic Circle

Analysis & Opinion: 20 Jan 10
Adjusting to life in the far north of Sweden can be tough at the best of times, but coming as a refugee presents an extra set of challenges. Malin Nyberg speaks to two women who are more than happy to adapt. READ »

Vellinge council in refugee children reversal

National: 13 Jan 10
The local council in Vellinge in southern Sweden has agreed to allow the municipality to house refugee children, reversing its long standing position on the issue. READ »

Swede offered top UN Afghanistan role

Politics: 9 Jan 10
Veteran Swedish diplomat and former UN envoy to Iraq, Steffan de Mistura, has been offered the job of top UN representative to Afghanistan according to the US pointman for the country. READ »

Crown Princess in surprise Afghanistan trip

Society: 5 Jan 10
Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria and her fiancé Daniel Westling on Sunday and Monday greeted Swedish soldiers stationed in Afghanistan. READ »

Afghan teens left in the cold by train operator

National: 29 Dec 09
The five Afghan teens found wandering in the cold near Sävsjö in southern Sweden had not been left in the forest by smugglers, it emerged on Monday, but had instead been kicked off a Swedish passenger train. READ »

Swedish police produce pepper spray at refugee's wedding

National: 20 Dec 09
A wedding on Saturday in Malmö in southern Sweden came to an abrupt halt as police arrested the 24-year-old groom at the city hall, using pepper spray on him in the process. READ »

Allow Afghan women to give massages: army adviser

Society: 14 Dec 09
A Swedish army gender adviser in Afghanistan has taken the Armed Forces to task for only employing local men to perform massages on troops stationed in Mazar-E-Sharif. READ »

Swede held in Pakistan on terror suspicions

National: 10 Dec 09
A Swedish national is reportedly among five terror suspects arrested in Pakistan on suspicions of plotting a militant attack, Pakistani authorities said on Wednesday. READ »

Liberals call for lower taxes at party congress

Politics: 20 Nov 09
Liberal party leader Jan Björklund has rallied members during a speech at the party conference in Växjö calling for lower taxes, developments in nuclear power production and for Sweden to adopt the euro as its currency. READ »

Vellinge changes course to welcome refugee kids

Politics: 20 Nov 09
Local politicians who previously voiced their disapproval at a move to house asylum seeker children in Vellinge look set to sign an agreement to invite more children to reside in the municipality in the future. READ »

Lack of doctors for troops in Afghanistan

National: 18 Nov 09
Despite increased risks facing Swedish troops in Afghanistan, vital medical personnel are still in short supply in the field. READ »

Moderate hierarchy warns Vellinge party cadre

National: 15 Nov 09
The Moderate party secretary Per Schlingmann has warned party members in Skåne in southern Sweden over comments regarding the housing of refugee children at a Vellinge youth hostel. READ »

Government mulls new law to force care for asylum kids

National: 13 Nov 09
Government parties have called for legislation to force municipalities to care for children seeking asylum amid recent protests over the housing of young refugees in Vellinge in southern Sweden. READ »

Injured soldiers back on Swedish soil

National: 13 Nov 09
Two of the five soldiers injured in Wednesday's bomb explosion in Afghanistan landed in Sweden on Thursday evening. A further two aircraft with medical personnel have been dispatched to bring back the other casualties. READ »

Swedish soldiers 'unstable' after Afghanistan explosion

National: 12 Nov 09
The conditions of two of the soldiers injured in a bomb explosion in Afghanistan on Wednesday are reported to have deteriorated overnight. READ »

Protests over housing for refugee children

National: 12 Nov 09
A former youth hostel in Vellinge outside of Malmö in southern Sweden opened its doors on Thursday as temporary housing for refugee children, despite bitter complaints from local residents and politicians. READ »

Teens sign up for jihad at Stockholm youth centre

National: 11 Nov 09
Swedish taxpayers helped fund a youth recreation centre in the north Stockholm suburb of Rinkeby which served as a recruiting station for the Somalia-based Islamist group al-Shabaab. READ »

Afghanistan must bridge credibility gap: Bildt

Politics: 11 Nov 09
With Kabul's credibility "bordering disaster", Swedish foreign minster Carl Bildt has called on Hamid Karzai to instigate widespread reforms during his second term as president of Afghanistan. READ »

Five Swedish soldiers injured in Afghanistan

National: 11 Nov 09
Five Swedish soldiers have been injured in an explosion that also claimed the life of a local foreign language interpreter, the Swedish Armed Forces said in a statement on Wednesday. READ »

Sweden to pay more asylum seekers to leave

National: 6 Nov 09
Sweden has decided to expand a programme which gives unsuccessful asylum seekers money to voluntarily return to their homelands, at the same time as the number of refugee applications continues to drop. READ »

Obama welcomes Reinfeldt for White House visit

Politics: 3 Nov 09
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt met with Barack Obama on Monday to discuss how to reach what the US President called an "important deal" at the upcoming Copenhagen conference on climate change. READ »

Swedish forces to remain in Afghanistan

National: 22 Oct 09
Swedish troops are set to extend their stay in Afghanistan to the end of 2010, the foreign ministry said on Thursday. READ »

Another Swede held in Pakistan: report

National: 12 Oct 09
Sweden’s foreign ministry confirmed on Monday that an additional Swedish citizen is currently being held in prison in Pakistan following the return home at the weekend of a group of Swedes who had been arrested on terror charges. READ »

Swedish soldier injured in Afghanistan

National: 11 Oct 09
A Swedish soldier was injured in Afghanistan on Saturday when his unit was attacked near Sayyad. READ »

Pakistan Swedes arrive home

National: 11 Oct 09
The four Swedes deported from Pakistan arrived at Stockholm Arlanda airport late on Saturday night. They were met by plain clothes police and appeared tired from their ordeal. READ »

Terror suspect Swedes freed from Pakistan

National: 10 Oct 09
The Swedish foreign ministry has confirmed that four Swedish citizens, arrested in Pakistan in August as terrorist suspects, have been released and put on a flight to Stockholm. READ »

Swedish journalist claims Obama Nobel jackpot

National: 9 Oct 09
While the decision to award US President Barack Obama the Nobel Peace Prize has been received by widespread surprise, one Swedish journalist is toasting the Norwegians after winning 50,000 kronor on the outcome. READ »

Obama Nobel win shocks Swedish peace group

Politics: 9 Oct 09
The Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society has classified as "shameful" the decision by the Nobel Committee in Oslo to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2009 to Barack Obama. READ »

Swedish soldiers shot in Afghanistan firefight

National: 9 Oct 09
Two Swedish soldiers are recovering after sustaining injuries in a firefight in the vicinity of Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan on Thursday evening. READ »

Sweden looks to boost Afghanistan force

Politics: 30 Sep 09
Sweden wants to send more troops to Afghanistan after an assessment by the Armed Forces concluded that the current force of 500 soldiers is too small. READ »

Terror suspect Swedes still detained: Pakistan

National: 16 Sep 09
Pakistan’s foreign ministry on Wednesday confirmed that four Swedish citizens are sitting in prison in the capital Islamabad, three weeks after their arrest in the north of the country. READ »

Afghanistan talks should be held in Kabul: Bildt

Politics: 15 Sep 09
Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt has said the EU would like to see Kabul host an impending international conference on Afghanistan's future. READ »

Four Swedes in Pakistan terror probe

National: 14 Sep 09
Sweden's foreign ministry confirmed on Monday that four Swedish citizens - three adults and a child - are being held in Pakistan, where authorities are investigating whether the group has ties to Al-Qaeda. READ »

'Guantánamo Swede' arrested in Pakistan

National: 11 Sep 09
One of the three Swedish nationals arrested nearly two weeks ago in Pakistan is Mehdi Ghezali, a former terror suspect who was released from the United States’ Guantánamo Bay prison in 2004. READ »

Troops ransack Afghan hospital: Swedish charity

National: 7 Sep 09
A Swedish charity has claimed that foreign troops entered its hospital in Afghanistan, smashed doors and tied up staff and patients' relatives, violating agreements between aid workers and the military. READ »

Sweden navigates complex waters of EU foreign policy

Analysis & Opinion: 3 Sep 09
With an important meeting of EU's foreign ministers taking place in Stockholm this weekend, David Stavrou examines the changing roles of Sweden and the EU in world affairs. READ »

'No time line for Afghanistan exit': Bildt

Politics: 1 Sep 09
The international community will not leave Afghanistan until the country has undergone a secure transition, Sweden's foreign minister Carl Bildt said on Tuesday. READ »

Bildt to Afghanistan for talks

Politics: 31 Aug 09
Foreign Minister Carl Bildt arrived in Kabul on Sunday to begin two days of talks with international representatives and Afghanistan's president and foreign minister. READ »

Amnesty: 'Sweden party to torture' in Afghanistan

National: 27 Aug 09
Human rights group Amnesty International has argued that Sweden is taking part in torture after the country handed over its first prisoner in Afghanistan to local authorities. READ »

'Bildt interview supports my immunity deal': Karadzic

Politics: 18 Aug 09
Bosnian Serb war crimes suspect Radovan Karadzic asserted on Monday that Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt has submitted information backing his claims of an immunity deal. READ »

'Swedish spy threat at Cold War levels': report

National: 30 Jul 09
The threat of espionage faced by Sweden from foreign security services remains widespread, according to a new report from Swedish military intelligence. READ »

Taliban commander: 'Swedes will be killed'

National: 29 Jul 09
A regional Taliban commander has warned that Swedes serving in Afghanistan will be the target of reprisals following the killing of three of the guerrilla group’s fighters by Swedish troops last week. READ »

Afghan teens in Swedish asylum limbo

National: 29 Jul 09
A wave of teenage Afghan refugees has arrived in Malmö and other Swedish cities in recent weeks. Many remain in limbo as most Swedish municipalities refuse to accept them. READ »

Bildt: bigger role for EU in Afghanistan

Politics: 27 Jul 09
The European Union should take on a larger role in Afghanistan, Sweden's foreign minister, Carl Bildt, has suggested. READ »

Fire fight Swedes return to Afghanistan base

National: 26 Jul 09
The Swedish and Finnish troops that were came under fire in Afghanistan on Saturday were able to return safely to base on Sunday morning. READ »

Bildt to meet Holbrooke in Kabul ahead of elections

National: 25 Jul 09
While Swedish troops stationed at Aqchah in northern Afghanistan on Thursday night battled in a firefight with opposing forces, Foreign Minister Carl Bildt was in Kabul on Friday to join US regional envoy Richard Holbrooke for a pre-election assessment trip. READ »

Swedes kill three in Afghanistan fire fight

National: 24 Jul 09
Swedish military forces were involved in a battle in Aqchah in northern Afghanistan on Thursday night in which at least three of the attackers were killed READ »

Tolgfors touts closer EU-Nato ties during Pentagon talks

Politics: 22 Jul 09
Swedish defence minister Sten Tolgfors called for closer cooperation between the European Union and Nato during meetings with his American counterpart in Washington on Tuesday. READ »

Swedish embassy targeted in bomb plot

National: 24 Jun 09
Pakistani security forces have arrested a man suspected of plotting to bomb the Swedish embassy in Islamabad. READ »

Global arms spending hits new heights: Swedish think tank

Society: 8 Jun 09
World arms spending reached record levels in 2008, with the United States, China and Russia all upping their military budgets, Swedish think tank SIPRI reports. READ »

Sören Wibe: The economics of a eurosceptic

Analysis & Opinion: 5 Jun 09
As a fully fledged eurosceptic, the June List's Sören Wibe is pushing to stop the EU becoming an increasingly federalist project. READ »

Swedish court okays higher rent for refugees

Society: 22 May 09
A Swedish court has ruled that a landlord’s decision to charge higher rent to a refugee family does not qualify as discrimination. READ »

Swedish terror suspect worked for Al-Qaeda: prosecutors

National: 22 Apr 09
As the trial of a Swedish citizen facing terror charges began in New York on Tuesday, prosecutors argued that the man planned to set up an Al-Qaeda terrorist training camp in the United States. READ »

Covert Facebook contacts seek Swedish military secrets

National: 18 Apr 09
Swedish soldiers deployed in Afghanistan have been contacted via Facebook in an attempt to glean secret military information. READ »

Swedish terror suspect on trial in US

National: 14 Apr 09
The trial began in New York on Monday of a Swedish citizen suspected of attempting to set up a terrorist training camp in the United States. READ »

Swedish soldiers attacked in Afghanistan

National: 10 Apr 09
A group of Swedish soldiers came under attack in Afghanistan on Thursday evening. The soldiers were patrolling with Afghani police when they were shot at. READ »

'You couldn't hope for a better presidency'

Analysis & Opinion: 1 Apr 09
In a time of severe economic crisis, the European Union is fortunate to have Sweden taking up the presidential reins this summer, British Ambassador to Sweden Andrew Mitchell tells The Local's James Savage. READ »

Sweden Democrats in racism row

Politics: 30 Mar 09
Racism and hostility toward foreigners are common themes for the far-right Sweden Democrats, despite the party’s efforts to move into the political mainstream, according to a new investigation. READ »

Rosengård: Integration in the eye of the storm

Analysis & Opinion: 27 Mar 09
Malmö suburb Rosengård has come to symbolise Sweden's struggles with integration. AFP's Marc Preel examines a community grappling with its identity after a winter marred by rioting and clashes with the police. READ »

Terror Swede to finish jail time in Sweden

National: 26 Mar 09
A 21-year-old Swede convicted for terror offences in Bosnia will serve out the rest of his sentence in Sweden. READ »

Sharp drop in asylum applications to Sweden

National: 20 Mar 09
Fewer people are seeking asylum in Sweden, with the number of applications dropping 33 percent last year, according to new statistics. READ »

Migration Board worker charged with bribery

National: 19 Mar 09
An employee with Sweden’s Migration Board has been charged with bribery after requesting 40,000 kronor ($4,920) to arrange a residence permit for an asylum seeker from Afghanistan. READ »

Activists jailed for weapons sabotage

National: 16 Mar 09
A man and a woman have each been sentenced to four months in prison for the sabotage of 14 grenade launchers during a raid on the premises of Saab Bofors Dynamics in Eskilstuna in central Sweden. READ »

'Anti-Semitism on the rise in Sweden'

Analysis & Opinion: 9 Feb 09
An ugly wave of anti-Semitism is on the rise in Sweden, and politicians who compare Israel with Nazi Germany or apartheid-era South Africa cannot claim to be free of responsibility, writes David Stavrou, a freelance Israeli journalist based in Sweden. READ »

Reinfeldt in unexpected visit to Afghanistan

Politics: 19 Jan 09
Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt on Monday made a surprise stop in Afghanistan to meet Swedish troops in the northern part of the country, a government spokesman said. READ »

Army hushes up Afghanistan risks

National: 23 Nov 08
The Swedish armed forces have deliberately played down the risks faced by Swedish troops in Afghanistan, a new report shows. READ »

Migration Board sets new principle in Congo ruling

National: 22 Nov 08
The Swedish Migration Board (Migrationsverket) has established a new guiding principle in awarding residency to a woman from war-torn DR Congo. READ »

Little support for expanding Sweden's presence in Afghanistan

National: 18 Nov 08
Most Swedes do not wish to see an increase in the size of the country’s force in Afghanistan, according to a new study. READ »

Sweden signs up to cluster bomb treaty

Politics: 16 Nov 08
Sweden has decided to sign up to the international treaty, framed in Dublin in May, to ban current designs of cluster bombs. READ »

More Swedish troops and aid to Afghanistan

Politics: 14 Nov 08
Sweden announced on Thursday it plans to increase aid to Afghanistan as well as send an additional 110 soldiers there, bringing the size of its force to about 500 troops in 2009. READ »

Swedish soldiers in Afghanistan firefight

National: 8 Nov 08
For the second night running Swedish soldiers have been in the firing line in Afghanistan. The soldiers were on night patrol west of Mazar-i-Sharif when they became involved in a firefight. READ »

Swedish 'al-Qaeda leader' killed in Iraq

National: 15 Oct 08
The Swedish citizen who on Wednesday evening was reported to have been killed by US forces in Iraq was Abu Qaswara - named on UN and EU terror lists as one of the most senior al-Qaeda leaders in the country. READ »

World anti-drug forum gathers experts in Stockholm

Society: 7 Sep 08
Stockholm will this week host experts, politicians, police and anti-drug activists from 82 countries to share ideas and devise strategies for stopping drug abuse worldwide. READ »

Liberal Party calls for Sweden to join Nato force

Politics: 28 Aug 08
The Liberal Party (Folkpartiet) believes that Sweden ought to send more soldiers to Afghanistan and participate in Nato’s rapid reaction force. READ »

Failed asylum seekers going underground

Politics: 25 Aug 08
More unsuccessful asylum seekers are going into hiding in Sweden, new figures from the Migration Board show. Tighter rules permitting authorities to send back more refugees from war-torn countries are given the blame. READ »

Swedish missile among US army's favourites in Iraq

Science & Technology: 22 Aug 08
A precision control projectile co-developed by a Swedish company has been listed as one of the US army's prestigious 'Top 10 inventions of 2007'. READ »

UN slams Sweden's deportation policy

Society: 14 Aug 08
United Nation refugee agency UNHCR has criticized Sweden's decision to deport Afghan refugees to Kabul even if they have no social or family ties in the capital city. READ »

Swedish officer injured in Afghanistan blast

National: 4 Aug 08
A Swedish army officer is to be flown home from Afghanistan after being seriously injured in a bomb explosion on Monday afternoon. READ »

Defence Minister: 'FRA doesn’t monitor individual Swedes'

Analysis & Opinion: 30 Jul 08
In explaining the importance of Sweden's new surveillance law, Minister of Defence Sten Tolgfors argues that signals intelligence activities on cable-bound communications is no greater an invasion of privacy than monitoring the airwaves. READ »

More under-age Afghan refugees coming to Sweden

Society: 20 Jul 08
The number of under-age Afghan refugees seeking asylum in Sweden without their parents has gone up significantly within the last two years. READ »

The hidden lives of Sweden’s undocumented migrants

Analysis & Opinion: 9 Jul 08
Sweden has taken in thousands of asylum seekers in recent year. But not all have had their applications accepted. Faisal Enayat Khan describes his encounters with just a handful of Sweden's estimated 15,000 undocumented migrants. READ »