2014 mosque arson attacks in Sweden

The 2014 Sweden mosques arson attacks were a series of incidents all of which were initially believed to be arson attacks on three mosques in Sweden, that took place during one week at the end of 2014.^[4] In the third incident, in addition to being struck by a Molotov cocktail, the mosque at Uppsala was vandalized with racist graffiti.^[4][6]

2014 mosque arson attacks in Sweden
Eslöv Uppsala Eskilstuna 2014 mosque arson attacks in Sweden (Sweden)
Location	Eslöv, Uppsala and Eskilstuna, Sweden
Date	25 December 2014[1][2]– 1 January 2015[3]
Attack type	Arson[4]
Weapons	Molotov cocktails[4]
Motive	Anti-immigration[5] Anti-Islam[5]

The first incident, the only one to have caused injuries, was found to have been an accident in the mosque kitchen caused by an overheated deep-fryer.^[7][8][9]

Accident and attacks

On Christmas Day, five people suffered injuries when, according to early reports, a petrol bomb had been tossed through the window of a mosque in Eskilstuna. Up to 20 people, including children, were in the mosque at the time of the attack.^[1][2] Police later said they were investigating the incident as an accident, considering it unlikely to have been a deliberate attack.^[7] It was later reported that an overheated deep-fryer was the probable cause of the fire.^[8][9]

The second event (and first indisputable arson attack) took place on 29 December in the southern Swedish town of Eslöv just after 3 am local time. No one was injured on that occasion.^[5][10]

Early on New Year's morning, there was another arson attack on a mosque, this time in Uppsala.^[3][11][12] In this attack the mosque was also vandalized with racist graffiti.^[6]

Background

The attacks happened at a time of rising anti-immigrant sentiment and political tension over Sweden's status as the leading destination in the European Union (per capita) for asylum seekers.^[13]

Response

Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said that the attacks were "hateful violence" and denounced the crime. He said that the attacks were not representative of Sweden. and that "no-one in Sweden should be afraid of practicing their religion".^{[10][citation needed]}

Samir Muric, the imam in Eslöv, told a Swedish news agency: "Unfortunately this is probably something to do with Islamophobia. I live nearby, and it’s beginning to feel unsafe."^[5]

On January 2, 2015, hundreds of anti-racist demonstrators in three major Swedish cities rallied in support of Muslims.^[14][15]

See also

• 2003 & 2005 Malmö mosque arson attack
• 2010 & 2012 Malmö synagogue arson attack
• Arson attacks on asylum centres in Sweden

References

1. "Arson attack at Swedish mosque leaves five injured". euronews. 26 December 2014.
2. "Five hurt in mosque arson attack". thelocal.se. 26 December 2014.
3. "Uppsala mosque hit in third firebomb attack". thelocal.se. January 2015.
4. Milne, Richard (January 2015). "Sweden hit by third assault on mosque". Financial Times.(subscription required)
5. David Crouch (29 December 2014). "Swedish mosque set ablaze in second suspected arson attack in a week". the Guardian.
6. "Sweden hit by third mosque arson attack in a week". straitstimes.com.
7. "Source: Police "no longer suspect arson" at Eskilstuna mosque". Sveriges Radio. 5 January 2015. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
8. "Local newspaper: Eskilstuna mosque fire caused by deep-fryer". Sveriges Radio. 9 March 2015.
9. "Report deep fryer started mosque fire". The Local. 9 March 2015.
10. "Second Swedish Mosque Targeted in Suspected Arson Attack". newsweek.com. 29 December 2014.
11. "Sweden hit by third mosque arson attack". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 January 2015.
12. "Sweden suffers third mosque arson attack in a week". The National.
13. "Swedes rally in support of mosques after arson attacks". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2018-12-31. Retrieved 2017-08-23.
14. ABC News. "Swedes Rally in Support of Mosques After Arson Attacks". ABC News. Archived from the original on 2015-01-09. Retrieved 2020-06-27.
15. "Swedes rally in support of Muslims after arson attacks against mosques". Fox News. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2015-01-03.