Police in Denmark and Sweden are investigating after hand grenades were thrown near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen and shots were fired at the Israeli embassy in Stockholm on Tuesday night and the early hours of Wednesday morning.
Three Swedish men were arrested in the Danish capital on Wednesday on suspicion of involvement in two explosions near the Israeli embassy at 3.20am in the Copenhagen district of Hellerup.
In a separate incident, shortly before 6pm on Tuesday, police in Stockholm attended the Israeli embassy on Strandvägen after reports of a loud bang. Police confirmed the embassy was hit by bullets and have launched an investigation into serious weapons offences. Nobody was injured.
The explosions in Copenhagen were believed to have been caused by hand grenades that damaged a building about 100 metres from the Israeli embassy. Nobody was injured.
Two men were arrested at Copenhagen central station on a train headed for the Danish town of Padborg. A third man was arrested near the embassy. The men arrested on the train were expected to attend a hearing on Thursday where they will be charged with possession of weapons.
The three men were aged 15-20, police said, adding that it was too early to say anything about a motive or whether they acted alone.
“Our investigation shows that the blasts likely were caused by hand grenades,” said Jens Jespersen, a spokesperson for Copenhagen police. He said it was unclear whether the Israeli embassy was the target.
The Danish justice minister, Peter Hummelgaard, said the incident was “inherently serious”. He said it was too early to say anything about a possible motive but that the investigation would look at potential connections to Iran and possible links to the incident in Stockholm.
Swedish police declined to comment on a possible motivation behind the shooting, as no arrests have been made. A spokesperson said: “The criminal investigation into the shooting at the Israeli embassy is ongoing in full force with several investigative measures to find the perpetrator(s).”
after newsletter promotion
In late January, the Israeli embassy in Stockholm was sealed off after what was described as “a dangerous object” was found on its grounds. Swedish media said the object was a hand grenade.
The Swedish justice minister, Gunnar Strömmer, said: “I look with severity on the shooting at Israel’s embassy in Stockholm last night and the events reported from Copenhagen this morning.”
Swedish security police (Säpo) declined to comment.