Sweden protests: Three injured in unrest over planned Koran burning | World news
At least three people were shot by police during protests against a right-wing extremist group in Sweden.
Riots have broken out across the country in recent days after the Danish right-wing extremist politician Rasmus Paludan planned to carry out Koran burning in various cities.
On Sunday, a crowd of about 150 people threw stones at police and set fire to cars in Norrköping’s eastern city.
Paludan and his party Stram Kurs had organized a demonstration in the area but never showed up, Swedish media reported.
The police responded to the protest with releasing warning shots, but three people “met by rikoschetter” and were brought to hospital.
They were later arrested on suspicion of crime, police say.
Riots were also reported in the nearby city of Linköping, where Paludan had planned to hold a demonstration but he later stopped.
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On Facebook, the politician said that he made the decision because Swedish authorities were “completely incapable” of protecting him or themselves.
During the past three days, violent clashes have been seen in Sweden’s capital, Stockholm, and a number of other cities.
Dozens of police officers were injured and four emergency vehicles were set on fire in central Örebro after riots broke out on Friday, due to Paludan’s plan to burn a Koran there.
In the southern Swedish landskrona region, some protesters set cars, tires and wastebaskets on fire, while others erected a barrier to obstruct traffic.
Similar demonstrations took place in the country’s third largest city, Malmö, where a city bus and other objects were set on fire.
Mr Paludan started the Tight Course Party in 2017 and is now known for his anti-immigration and anti-Islam agenda.