Stockholm alleges that Iran-backed groups are plotting against Jewish and Israeli interests on Swedish soil.
Published On 16 Sep 2026
Sweden has expelled a staff member from the Iranian embassy in Stockholm and summoned Iran’s ambassador, accusing Tehran of orchestrating threats targeting Jewish and Israeli communities within the country.
The Swedish government determined that the diplomat’s activities were inconsistent with the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, which governs the conduct and privileges of foreign diplomatic personnel.
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said the expulsion was carried out to safeguard Swedish citizens and national interests, though she declined to elaborate further.
Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer subsequently told state broadcaster SVT that the measures were prompted by Iran’s suspected operations directed against “Jewish and Israeli interests” in Sweden.
“We know that Iran, over an extended period, has engaged in activities that threaten security in and against Sweden, targeting both individuals opposed to the Iranian regime and a range of Jewish and Israeli interests in our country,” Strommer said, noting that Iran was leveraging criminal networks to pursue its objectives.
“We can confirm that Iran continues to engage in activities that pose security threats in and against Sweden. This includes, among other things, attempts to use proxies, such as criminal networks, to carry out attacks or acts of violence,” Jonathan Svensson, a spokesperson for the Swedish Security Service, told AFP.
In 2024, the Security Service accused Iran of recruiting members of criminal gangs to commit acts of violence against Israeli and other interests in Sweden.
Iran has denied the allegations.
In a separate incident in 2023, Sweden accused Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of breaching a local SMS provider’s systems to distribute 15,000 text messages demanding retaliation after the Quran was burned during public protests.
