Country Reports on Terrorism 2014 - Sweden

Overview: The United States and Sweden maintained good cooperation on counterterrorism and law enforcement issues in 2014. U.S. agencies worked with their Swedish counterparts for the exchange and evaluation of terrorist-related information. Sweden is also active within the EU, UN, and Council of Europe on countering violent extremism and the recruitment of foreign terrorist fighters.

The Swedish government continued to highlight that terrorism can be motivated by right-wing, left-wing, or religious convictions. The Swedish Security Service (SÄPO) noted that the greatest terrorist threat in Sweden comes from violent Islamist extremists. The Swedish Security Service also expressed concern over the growing number of foreign terrorist fighters from Sweden traveling to Syria and Iraq to receive training and provide support to the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), as well as the possibility that returning foreign terrorist fighters could seek to commit terrorist attacks in Sweden or elsewhere.

The Swedish government appointed its first ever National Coordinator for Safeguarding Democracy from Violent Extremism. The Swedish government has described its approach to countering violent extremism as attempting to address underlying factors behind radicalization. The government seeks to "depolarize" Swedish society as a necessary step to counter violent extremism, with the idea that people who do not feel welcome and integrated in Swedish society might turn away from it, thereby turning to violent extremism.

The National Threat Advisory level in Sweden remained "elevated" (increased from level two to three on a scale of five levels) after first being raised in October 2010. Since then, Swedish law enforcement has disrupted several planned attacks.

Sweden is a member of the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, and has made generous humanitarian contributions to ISIL-impacted populations in Iraq. Sweden is a significant donor of humanitarian assistance for ISIL-impacted populations, and in 2014 contributed US $43 million and US $29.4 million in humanitarian assistance to Syria and Iraq, respectively. SÄPO is concerned with rapidly increasing numbers of foreign terrorist fighters who have left Sweden to join violent extremist groups in Syria and claimed that at least 110 individuals have traveled, with estimates of those who have traveled reaching as high as 350. Some of these travelers have been killed, but others have returned to Sweden. SÄPO views the returnees with specific concern as they could potentially plan an attack in Sweden, or could radicalize and recruit others for travel. SÄPO reported to Swedish press that it is conducting several "pre-investigations" related to individuals who have returned from conflict areas with fighting experience.

Foreign terrorist fighters in Sweden are recruited mainly through word of mouth by friends or family, as well as online. Foreign terrorist fighters traveling to Syria and Iraq from Sweden are most often young men of immigrant background, but not of Syrian descent. There is anecdotal evidence of women travelling to Syria as well, although their role upon arrival in Syria is less clear, with some appearing to travel to become wives to fighters or provide other logistical support to ISIL.

The Kurdistan Workers' Party continued to carry out significant support activities such as soldier recruitment and financing in Sweden in 2014.

The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency continuously reaches out to various agencies and communities to develop awareness of the foreign terrorist fighter threat, and the Counterterrorism Cooperative Council consisting of 13 government agencies coordinates Sweden's interagency counterterrorism cooperation. The National Center for Terrorism Threat Assessment produces long- and short-term strategic assessments of the terrorist threat against Sweden and Swedish interests. SÄPO monitors returned foreign terrorist fighters to evaluate their condition.

Legislation, Law Enforcement, and Border Security: Sweden's legislation criminalizes incitement of terrorist acts, recruitment to terrorist organizations, and providing of terrorism training. While five people have been convicted under these laws, only two convictions have remained standing following appeals. In all other prosecutions, courts have deemed the evidence presented in many trials inadequate to prove that those prosecuted would actually carry out their terrorist plots, had they not been intercepted.

Swedish law enforcement prepared for a reorganization in 2015 to unite the country's current 21 separate country police departments into one national agency with seven regions; this reorganization aims to streamline police work through clearer guidance and centralization of law enforcement efforts.

Sweden amended its Act on Criminal Responsibility for Public Provocation, Recruitment, and Training concerning Terrorist Offences and other Particularly Serious Crimes (2010:299) in July 2014, to include the ratification of the international Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism of 13 April 2005. Sweden is also undertaking an internal investigation into how to implement the various provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 2178, including the possibility of criminalizing the act of training with terrorist organization or waging war campaigns on behalf of terrorist organizations.

Sweden has a specialized division at the Prosecution Authority that deals with all terrorism-related cases. SÄPO has the main responsibility to counter terrorism in Sweden. There is timely sharing of terrorism-related information and prosecutors are consulted at early stages of investigations and work in coordination with counterparts in other components of law enforcement. Law enforcement units have a record of accountability and respect for human rights.

SÄPO works in concert with the border police and the Migration Board in countering terrorism, and is the sole agency with jurisdiction over counterterrorism investigations. SÄPO chairs the National Centre for Terrorist Threat Assessment (NCT); a permanent working group within the Swedish Counter-Terrorism Cooperation Council. The NCT is staffed by personnel from the National Defense Radio Establishment (FRA), the Military Intelligence and Security Directorate (MUST), and SÄPO. SÄPO also convenes the National Counter-Terrorism Cooperation Council (NTC, which works to increase Sweden's ability to counter terrorism.) The Counter-Terrorism Cooperation Council consists of: the Armed Forces; the Civil Contingencies Agency; the Coast Guard; Customs; the Defense Research Agency; the Economic Crime Authority; the Migration Board; the National Bureau of Investigation; the National Defense Radio Establishment; the Prison and Probation Service; the Prosecution Authority; the Radiation Safety Authority; the Security Service; and the Transport Agency. This Council facilitates sharing of information across different Swedish agencies on counterterrorism issues.

Swedish citizen Johan Gustafsson, who was kidnapped by al-Qa'ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) when visiting Mali in November 2011, remained in AQIM's detention at the end of 2014. Gustafsson was last seen in an AQIM-released photograph from August.

There was significant law enforcement cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of international terrorism. Swedish law enforcement officials work closely with U.S. counterparts and cooperation has directly supported several investigations/cases.

Countering the Financing of Terrorism: Sweden is a member of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Sweden provided its latest Mutual Evaluation Report to the FATF in October 2012. The only new passage of legislation pertaining to Terrorist Financing in 2014 was the addition of an allowance to halt a transaction for two days for suspected terrorist financing, as well as an adjustment to increased rights for confiscation of assets.

The Finance Inspection agency (in concert with many other agencies) released a report on Financing of Terrorism under the FATF mandate in March. The report raised the issues of money flows both to and from Sweden, but commented that the flows are of "small scale and of legal origin" while noting Sweden's vulnerability to many forms of terrorist financing. The report spoke of a knowledge deficit in many agencies about counterterrorist finance, noting this leads to a limited number of reported suspected terrorist financing activities. The economic crime unit and the tax authority are not required to look for terrorist financing when investigating financial crimes.

In November, the Finance Inspection launched a major investigation into Sweden's largest banks and their handling of money laundering and terrorist financing.

For further information on money laundering and financial crimes, see the 2014 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), Volume 2, Money Laundering and Financial Crimes: http://www.state.gov/j/inl/rls/nrcrpt/index.htm.

Regional and International Cooperation: Sweden is a member of the EU, and also participated in an ad hoc group of the EU and several member states to focus on foreign terrorist fighter issues. Sweden participates in the EU's Schengen cooperation and uses the Schengen Information System II for information sharing, port of entry screening, lost and stolen passport information and watch listing. Under the auspices of the PNR agreement between the EU and the United States, Sweden collects and shares PNR information from commercial flights.

Sweden co-sponsored UNSCR 2178 and supports the UN's counterterrorism efforts. During the fall of 2014, Sweden was an active partner in formulating the EU's counterterrorism/foreign terrorist fighter strategy for Iraq and Syria. Sweden also participated in the Global Counterterrorism Forum's workshop on Counterterrorism and Foreign Terrorist Fighters in Marrakech in December 2014.

Sweden continued to contribute to counterterrorism capacity building projects through its development aid work carried out by the Swedish International Development Agency, and also via funding to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime-Terrorism Prevention Branch and the OSCE. Sweden also supported the EU's work with capacity building projects in prioritized countries and regions such as Pakistan, Yemen, the Horn of Africa, the Maghreb, and the Sahel. Sweden provided trainers to the EU Training Mission in Mali (MINUSMA). Sweden is a large donor to the UN's Counter-Terrorism International Task Force (CTITF), with special focus on the CTITF workgroup that works on strengthening human rights in counterterrorism work.

Countering Radicalization to Violence and Violent Extremism: In a response to a report by the Defense College on how to counter violent extremism (CVE), the Swedish government appointed former Social Democratic Party (SDP) leader Mona Sahlin as its national CVE coordinator in July 2014. The Swedish government has tasked the coordinator to improve collaboration among agencies, local authorities, and organizations at the national, regional, and local level regarding efforts to prevent and counter violent extremism.

The Swedish government is investigating how to enhance existing legislation to mitigate the risks posed by foreign terrorist fighters.

On the more general topic of youth and radicalization, the Swedish Media Council has conducted a study of how the internet and social media are used to promote anti-democratic messages that encourage the use of violence for an ideological cause aimed at young people. According to the study, preventive work should include efforts to equip young people with the tools necessary to challenge anti-democratic and violent messages targeting them from the internet, social media, their peers, and adults. Critical media training provided by schools for young people is an important measure to prevent violent extremism in Sweden. The Swedish Media Council has also developed an online training course for teachers.

Some municipalities strived to cultivate trusted relations with relevant community actors, to empower those best-placed to affect change, and to develop effective reintegration programs for returning foreign terrorist fighters. Such efforts were not coordinated at the national level, however.