Explosions near Israeli embassy in Copenhagen, three Swedish nationals arrested

Two explosions occurred near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen in the early morning on Wednesday (2 October) Danish police have confirmed.

The explosions occurred in Copenhagen, not far from the Israeli embassy. The police of the Danish capital did not go into details about the incident, but confirmed that it took place in the "immediate vicinity" of the Israeli embassy.

Three young Swedish nationals have been arrested following the explosions, the police said at a press conference, according to Danish media DR.

According to Swedish public broadcaster SVT, the attacks were carried out on behalf of the Swedish Foxtrot criminal network. They reported that the Danish police were investigating this hypothesis on the basis of a modus operandi involving hand grenades.

The Foxtrot network is a Swedish criminal network that emerged in the late 2010s, aiming  to become the leading distributor of narcotics in Sweden. The criminal network has previously been associated with several violent incidents in Sweden, including shootings and assaults.

Its leader, Iranian-born Rawa Maji, has previously been accused by Israeli intelligence of carrying out acts of violence against the Israeli embassy in Stockholm via his network on behalf of Iran, according to Swedish media.

Earlier reports in Swedish media had suggested that one of those arrested had links to Swedish gang crime.

In August, Denmark announced the introduction of border controls with Sweden, following a resurgence of Swedish gang violence that has spilt over into Denmark and Sweden's other Nordic neighbours, prompting Nordic regional cooperation at the highest level to tackle the issue.

"We are of course looking at links to the Israeli embassy, which is nearby. But it is too early to say whether there is a connection between one or the other", said Deputy Police Commissioner Jakob Hansen at an earlier briefing prior to the arrests on Wednesday (2 October).

These explosions come against a tense geopolitical backdrop in the Middle East, with Iran firing several hundred rockets at Israel on Tuesday (1 October) night in response to Israel's military operation in southern Lebanon.

"We are shocked by the explosions near the embassy earlier today. We have full confidence in the Danish police in their handling of the case and the continued investigation wrote the Israeli Embassy in Denmark on X.

The Israeli embassy is located in an area where several countries have their embassies and consulates, including Romania, Thailand, Iran and Turkey.

[Edited by Owen Morgan]