The Swedish Security Service on Tuesday blamed Iran for hacking into a text messaging service last year and sending thousands of messages urging Swedes to take revenge against Quran burners.
On several occasions in 2023, people set fire to Islam's holy book in public in Sweden, prompting outrage in the Muslim world and raising fears of attacks by extremists. Swedish prosecutors said last month they would put two men on trial for setting fire to the Quran.
"The security police are able to establish that a cyber group acted on behalf of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps [IRGC] to carry out an influence campaign," the security service said in a statement. "The purpose was, among other things, to paint the image of Sweden as an Islamophobic country and create division in society."
Protests in region against desecration of Quran in Sweden - in pictures
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Demonstrators gather outside the Swedish embassy in Tehran to protest against an insult to the Quran in Stockholm. Reuters -
A demonstrator holds up the Quran and a portrait of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a protest against Sweden in front of the Swedish embassy in Tehran. AP -
An egg is thrown by demonstrator at the Swedish embassy in Tehran during a protest against the desecration of the Quran in Sweden. AP -
In Tehran, Iranian students gather during a demonstration denouncing the burning of the Quran in Sweden. AFP -
An egg is thrown by demonstrator at the Swedish embassy in Tehran during a protest against the desecration of the Quran in Sweden. AP -
Iranian students outside the Swedish embassy in Tehran denounce the burning of the Quran in Sweden. AFP -
Protesters carrying Iraqi flags and images of Shiite cleric and political leader Moqtada Al Sadr gather in Baghdad's Tahrir Square to protest against the burning of a Quran outside the Iraqi embassy in Copenhagen, Denmark. AP -
Protesters chant slogans against Sweden in front of the embassy in Tehran, Iran. The Farsi placard on the left reads: "Our red lines are the supreme leader and the Quran". AP -
A Lebanese man takes part in a demonstration in Beirut called by Hezbollah to condemn the desecration of the Quran in Sweden. Reuters -
People march in Beirut after Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah called for protests outside mosques following Friday prayers. EPA -
The scene in Beirut as thousands of people took to the streets in Muslim-majority countries to protest. EPA -
A woman holds the Quran in Kufa, Iraq, in protest after an activist desecrated a copy of the holy book for a second time in Sweden. AFP -
A demonstrator holds up a portrait of Iraqi Shiite cleric Moqtada Al Sadr, in Kufa. AFP -
Shiite clerics attend a protest in Baghdad, after Iraq called for an Islamic summit to discuss the desecration of the Quran. EPA -
Protesters burn posters of the Swedish flag and rainbow Pride flags in Sadr City, Baghdad. AFP -
Iranian worshippers hold up the Quran in Tehran. The country's goverment condemned the desecration in Sweden. AP -
Demonstrators in the Iranian capital Tehran chanted: 'Down with the United States, Britain, Israel and Sweden'. Reuters -
Demonstrators in Tehran march with signs denouncing the US and Israel as they condemn the burning of the Quran. AFP
Sweden last year raised its terrorism alert following the Quran burnings.
"That a state actor, in this case Iran, according to the security police's assessment, is behind an act that aims to destabilise Sweden or increase polarisation in our country is of course very serious," Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer told Reuters on Tuesday.
Iran's embassy in Stockholm rejected the accusation, the Iranian Students News Agency (Isna) reported, saying: "We expect Swedish authorities to curb this scheme against Iran ... especially since the Swedish judiciary issued a rightful decision to prosecute those who desecrated the Holy Quran. The publication of these claims in the media will only poison the relations between the two countries."
In a separate statement, the Swedish Prosecution Authority said the investigation showed it was Iran's IRGC that carried out the data breach. It said it had identified the hackers but would not press charges because it was unlikely to achieve a prosecution abroad or the extradition of people accused to Sweden.
