Gang violence
Sweden wants to ask the military for help against criminal gangs
Gang violence is escalating in Sweden. The government will now sit down with the police and military. photo
© Anders Wiklund/TT News Agency/AP/dpa
Deadly gang crime has escalated again in Sweden. Stockholm wants to take tougher action. “We will hunt down the gangs and we will defeat the gangs,” announces Prime Minister Kristersson.
In the fight against the escalating Gang violence in Sweden could soon involve the military. He will meet with national police chief Anders Thornberg and military commander Micael Bydén to examine how the armed forces could help police work against criminal gangs, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in a speech to the Swedish nation on Thursday evening.
“We will hunt down the gangs and we will defeat the gangs,” said the conservative head of government. “We will bring them to justice. If they are Swedish citizens, they will be imprisoned with very long prison sentences. If they are foreign citizens, they will also be deported.”
Eleven dead this month alone
Sweden has been struggling with rampant gang crime for years, with shots and intentional explosions occurring again and again. This month the violence escalated again, which is said to be related, among other things, to a suspected conflict within the criminal Foxtrot network. Eleven people have already been shot this month, including bystanders. A young woman also died in an explosion on Thursday.
Kristersson blamed years of political naivety for the dramatic situation. “An irresponsible immigration policy and failed integration have led us here,” he said. Exclusion and parallel societies provide breeding ground for criminal gangs. “There they can ruthlessly recruit children and train future murderers,” said the head of government.
The conservative further emphasized that Swedish legislation was not designed for “gang warfare and child soldiers”. His government is now changing this, both in migration and criminal policy. Juvenile prisons should be built to separate young offenders from adult criminals. Work is also being done to ensure that all children learn the Swedish language.