In the Swedish city of Örebro, about 200 kilometers west of Stockholm, a shootout took place. The police said that about 10 people were killed in it, but they could not yet give a “more precise” number of fatalities. Among them is also the attacker. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said that “this is the worst mass shooting in the history of Sweden.”
According to the head of the police in Örebro Roberto Eida Forest, the attacker was not previously known to the police. – At this stage, there is no indication that the terrorist theme is at stake – he said.
He added that the services cannot yet provide a “more precise” number of fatalities and identify the killed.
Earlier, the police reported that there were five people wounded in the shooting.
The media reported that a 35-year-old man who was then supposed to take his own life is a suspected attack at school. An automatic rifle was found next to it. Initially, the police also assumed that the perpetrator was working alone.
The incident occurred on Tuesday in the campus, where there are several schools for children and adults, Reuters pointed out. The attack is currently treated “as attempted murder, arson and crime with firearms” – added in a police statement.
Ambulances, emergency services and the police appeared on the spot, and a spokesman for local rescue services donated. After 14 o'clock, the police reported that the threat had not passed and appealed to school. “The operation concerns the threats of terminal violence,” the police reported in a statement.
Police in front of the school in Örebro, February 4, 2025.PAP/EPA/KICKI NILSSON
Police in front of the school in Örebro, February 4, 2025.PAP/EPA/KICKI NILSSON
Attack on school in Sweden
Initially, the daily “Aftonbladet”, citing anonymous sources, reported that shots were fired in the facility and several people were injured. “We heard a few shots outside,” said a person imprisoned at school, cited on Tuesday by “Aftonbladet”. Petter Kraftling, a teacher who claims to be on the campus, in an interview with the VI Larare portal reported that he barricaded himself at home after he “heard arrows”.
The Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson stated that this is “a painful day for the whole country.” Minister of Justice Gunnar Strommer in an interview with the public broadcaster SVT reported that the government was in contact with the police. “I follow the events in Örebro with horror. I think about everyone affected by this situation and concerned about their loved ones,” wrote on the portal X Teresa Carvalho from the Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party.
Left leader Nooshi Dadgostar on the same portal reported that she was “shocked by terrible news” reaching Örebro. “The violence that our country is facing is the abyss in which we have to find our way together,” the politician wrote.
Prime Minister of Sweden: The worst mass shooting in history
– It is difficult to understand the scale of what happened – admitted Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson at a specially convened press conference. He added that “we were witnessing brutal and deadly violence against completely innocent people.” This is the worst mass shooting in the history of Sweden – he assessed
According to the head of the Swedish government, “what has happened so far in other countries has now happened in Sweden.” Kristersson appealed for giving police time to determine what happened exactly.
So far, Sweden had no problem with mass shootings in schools. One of the most tragic acts of violence at school took place in 2015 in Trollhaettan in the Goeteborg region. The 21-year-old Swede killed three people, a teacher's assistant and two students. The perpetrator was shot by the police during the attack. Since then, guidelines have been developed on how to deal with such cases.
In Sweden, shooting in criminal environments, as well as bomb explosions, set to force tributes are a challenge for the police.
Source of the main photo: PAP/EPA/PONTUS LUNDAHL