Deadly School Shooting in Sweden Claims Ten Lives

In response to a tragic mass shooting that claimed ten lives, Sweden's government announced new security measures for schools, including the ability for teachers to search students' bags. Education Minister Johan Pehrson emphasized the urgency of enhancing safety protocols during a press conference on February 12, 2025. The new regulations, which are expected to be approved by parliament and take effect on July 1, 2025, will require schools to develop emergency plans for violent incidents. Access to school buildings will now be restricted, necessitating keys, door codes, or badges, while authorizations for surveillance cameras will be simplified. The announcement follows the February 4 shooting at the Campus Risbergska adult education center in Örebro, where 35-year-old Rickard Andersson killed ten individuals before dying by suicide. Police are investigating Andersson's background, noting he was an isolated individual with no criminal history who had previously attended the school. The government also plans to reform weapon laws to limit access to semi-automatic firearms.

A Swedish woman, Lina Ishaq, 52, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for genocide and war crimes against the Yazidi community, after her involvement with the Islamic State (IS) in Syria. According to the Stockholm District Court, Ishaq was found guilty of holding three Yazidi women and six children as slaves in Raqqa from 2014 to 2016, marking the first such trial for IS crimes against Yazidis in Sweden. Ishaq, who moved to Syria in 2013, is already serving sentences for bringing her young son to join IS and failing to prevent her other son, who died in 2017, from being used as a child soldier. The court stated she participated in the systematic enslavement of Yazidi women and children, enforcing strict adherence to IS's interpretation of Islam through physical violence. The Yazidis, an ancient religious minority targeted in genocidal attacks by IS in 2014, have faced persecution, with an estimated 5,000 killed and thousands more enslaved. The verdict is seen as a step towards restoring trust between the Yazidi community in Sweden and local authorities, according to community leaders. Ishaq plans to appeal her conviction, her lawyer stated.

A Stockholm court has sentenced 52-year-old Lina Ishaq to 12 years in prison for her involvement in genocide, crimes against humanity, and gross war crimes against the Yazidi religious minority in Syria in 2015. According to the court's ruling, Ishaq's actions contributed to the imprisonment and enslavement of Yazidi women and children, following the Islamic State's brutal campaign against this group, which resulted in over 3,000 deaths and the displacement of many from their ancestral homes. Upon returning to Sweden in 2020, Ishaq was already serving time for other crimes committed in Syria. The court stated that her offenses represented not only severe violations of individual rights but also a profound assault on fundamental human values. Her lawyer has indicated that Ishaq denies the charges and is contemplating an appeal. The United Nations previously classified the Islamic State’s attacks on Yazidis as a genocidal campaign, further emphasizing the gravity of the offenses committed.