Sweden says Iran behind 2023 hacker attack that urged revenge for Koran burning

"The aim was, among other things, to paint the picture of Sweden as an Islamophobic country, Fredrik Hallstrom, chief of operations at Sapo, said in a statement.

On August 1, 2023, Swedish media reported that a large number of people had received text messages calling for revenge against people who had burned the Muslim holy book, the authority noted.

According to prosecutors, an investigation had shown that a group called Anzu team was behind the operation, adding that the investigation had been closed, as it was deemed unlikely that it would be possible to bring the suspects to justice.

"Since the actors are acting on behalf of a foreign power, in this case Iran, our assessment is that the conditions necessary to bring charges abroad or an extradition to Sweden are missing for those suspected of being behind the attack," senior prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist said.

In August last year, Sweden's intelligence service Sapo raised its threat level to four on a scale of five after a series of protests that included Koran burnings had made the country a "prioritised target".

Relations between Sweden and several Middle Eastern countries were strained by the protests which were concentrated over the summer of 2023.

Iraqi protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad twice in July of that year, starting fires within the compound on the second occasion.

The Swedish government condemned the desecrations while noting the country's constitutionally protected freedom of speech and assembly laws.