Sweden calls Iranian diplomat to meeting over gang crime allegations
Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström has called Iran's Chargé d'Affaires to a meeting after reports that Iran recruited gang leader Rawa Majid – who is hiding from Swedish police over his role in a brutal gang conflict – to carry out attacks in Sweden and other countries.
"I will of course inform our partners, not least in the EU. As everyone knows we have an ongoing discussion about Iran in the EU," Billström told Swedish news agency TT in a statement. "What we're now seeing is a link between criminal networks and state actors. It's deeply concerning that a foreign power, in this case Iran, is said to have used criminal networks to commit or conspire to commit crimes in Sweden."
His comments came after Swedish security service Säpo confirmed reports from their Israeli counterparts, Mossad, that Säpo had established that the Iranian regime had recruited criminal gangs in Sweden to attack other states, including on Swedish soil.
"The security-threatening activities of the Iranian regime and its security services have also targeted representatives of other states, including Israel, that Iran regards as enemies of its regime. Such activities could be carried out with a view to harming Israeli and Jewish interests, targets, and activities in Sweden," said Säpo, adding that it had already thwarted several Iranian activities in Sweden.
Although Säpo did not comment on any specific incidents, it was widely reported that Majid's contacts were behind a hand grenade attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm in January, allegedly acting on the orders of the Iranian regime.
Swedish vocabulary: a foreign power – en främmande makt
Swedes are ditching cigarettes, but picking up snus habit
Swedes are consuming more snus – the moist tobacco pouches you put underneath your upper lip – than ever recorded, according to a new report by The Swedish Council for Information on Alcohol and Other Drugs (CAN).
Last year, more than one in five people aged 17-84 said they had used snus in the past month, the majority of them on a daily basis. That's an increase from 12 percent in 2011 to 21 percent.
So-called white snus, without tobacco, is becoming especially popular, particularly among young people and women.
Vaping, using e-cigarettes, is also on the increase among young people. The number of 17-29-year-olds who told CAN's survey they have vaped in the past month rose from 4 percent in 2021 to 16 percent in 2023.
Regular cigarettes, however, don't enjoy the same popularity, as The Local has previously reported. Six percent of adults said they smoked on a daily basis in 2023.
Swedish vocabulary: white snus – vitt snus
Swedish government moves to cut tax on ISK accounts
The government is pushing ahead with scrapping tax on investment savings accounts (known as ISK accounts in Sweden).
Under the new proposal, which has been co-authored by the government and the Sweden Democrats, tax on ISKs would be scrapped for any accounts where savings are less than 300,000 kronor.
The government has now handed over its proposal to the Council on Legislation, the parliamentary committee that investigates if government bills are in line with Swedish laws and the constitution, which is the last part of the process before it may or may not go to a vote in parliament.
If it goes ahead, it would come into force at the start of 2025, but the government does warn that it will depend on the financial situation at the time. The tax cut is expected to cost the state seven billion kronor.
Swedish vocabulary: an investment savings account – ett investeringssparkonto
More than 90 percent of Swedes favour variable-rate mortgages
More than nine out of ten home owners in Sweden chose variable rates on their mortgage last month.
State-owned mortgage bank SBAB writes that this is the highest figure in 15 years.
It reflects that people are hoping for variable rates to become cheaper, so they don't want to tie themselves up to a fixed-rate mortgage.
Sweden's central bank, the Riksbank, has already indicated it plans to lower the country's key interest rate another two times this year, which will have a knock-on effect on mortgage rates.
Swedish vocabulary: a variable rate – en rörlig ränta
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