Sombre scenes as Swedish royals and Prime Minister visit school shooting scene
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The victims of Sweden’s worst ever shooting in which 10 people were massacred are expected to be named today, an official said.
A breakthrough in identifying the bodies on Thursday means they are expected to be named today, Lars Bröms told Mitt i Stockholm yesterday.
It comes after the Swedish government has backed changes to gun laws, supported by the three largest parties in the Riksdag.
Access to certain semi-automatic weapons will be restricted and rules for suitability testing will be made clearer among other changes, Expressen cited a Friday morning government press release as saying.
It comes after Magdalena Andersson, former prime minister and leader of the opposition Social Democrats, called for tightened gun laws in The Guardian.
Meanwhile, Swedish Police confirmed they are not ruling out the possibility of a racist motivation behind the killing, carried out by suspected 35-year-old gunman Rickard Andersson, named in Swedish media and by a police source.
Asked if they had ruled out a racist motive, the force told The Independent their investigation is ongoing, but they are looking at this broadly and not ruling out anything at this stage.
‘There were bloodstains, puddles and drops everywhere’ – witness accountMaria Lahdo, a survivor of the gun massacre, described the “bloodbath” when she stepped out of her hiding place to be escorted out by police.
Hidden with others inside a classrooms, she recalls comforting each other and phoning worried relatives as gun shots rang out in the school.
“We heard two shots, when the third came we realized something was wrong,” Ms Lahdo told Expressen. “Another person in the room froze in shock in the doorway… I had to pull the person into the room and quickly lock it.
“There was someone in the hallway who suddenly started pulling the door handle. It must have been him trying to get in. Several people had panic attacks, it was terrible.”
When police arrived and they were escorted out of the room, they were warned that there would be blood.
“But you really didn’t understand it until you saw it with your own eyes,” she said.
“There were bloodstains, puddles and drops everywhere. You could see that people had been dragged in that blood. And we stepped in the blood when we ran out.”
Alex Croft7 February 2025 15:23
Watch: Swedish King says Sweden is ‘standing behind’ families of school shooting victimsSwedish King says Sweden is ‘standing behind’ families of school shooting victimsAlex Croft7 February 2025 14:54
Victim Salim Iskef’s friend tells of love for man who was like his brotherThe close friend of the 29-year-old who has been identified as among those shot dead in the horror attack has told local media of his love for a man who was like his brother.
Jonatan Suaw, 29, said Salim Iskef, 29, who was named in local reports as among the victims of the school shooting in Sweden, told Swedish publication Expressen: “I loved him.”
Mr Suaw said he had been invited to Mr Iskef’s upcoming wedding and had held his niece when she first first born.
Mr Suaw told the newspaper the pair were like brothers and that he now wants to live as Mr Iskef would live if he was still alive, always trying to do his best and being a good person.
(Syrian Orthodox St Mary’s Church Orebro)Alex Croft7 February 2025 14:31
Final heartbreaking phone call school shooting victim made to mother during attack revealedThe final heartbreaking phone call one of the Swedish school shooting victims made to his mother during the attack has been revealed.
Salim Iskef, 29, reportedly called his fiancée then his mother from inside Risbergska School just before he was shot dead in the horror that unfolded there.
In what were among his last words, Mr Iskef’s aunt Nadia Reeb told Aftonbladet that the 29-year-old told his mother: “Mom, take care of yourself and take care of my girl too.”
Alex Croft7 February 2025 14:10
In pictures: Mourners pay their respects
The victims of the shooting are expected to be named today (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
A makeshift memorial was set up near the site of the shooting (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)
Ten people were killed before the gunman shot himself, police say (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)Alex Croft7 February 2025 13:48
Saudi leaders extend condolences to Sweden’s king after school shootingSaudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud offered condolences to Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf after 10 people were killed in one of the worst shooting incidents in the country.
Crown prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud condemned “this criminal act, and extended his deepest condolences and sincere sympathy” to the Swedish king, families of the deceased and friendly people of Sweden, a statement read.
Alex Croft7 February 2025 13:29
Sombre scenes as Swedish royals and Prime Minister visit school shooting sceneSomber scenes as Swedish royals and Prime Minister visit school shooting sceneAlex Croft7 February 2025 13:10
Elon Musk slammed for sharing lies about the response to Sweden school shootingRickard Andersson, a 35-year-old recluse, has been named in Swedish media as the suspected gunman who killed 10 people at Risbergska School in Örebro, before turning the gun on himself.
But as well-wishers paid their respects to the victims of the massacre online, X owner and member of the Trump administration Musk promoted a false claim that “no European politician” had mentioned the massacre.
Posted by right wing account Inevitable West, the tweet also falsely claimed the “legacy media, as always, is silent”, despite widespread coverage of the tragedy in newspapers and on television around the world.
Read the full report:
Alex Croft7 February 2025 12:50
‘You should leave Europe’ heard in victim’s footageA video published by TV4 shows a victim hiding in the bathroom while the Örebro shooter appears to be firing bullets outside.
At one point, someone can be heard shouting “you should leave Europe”, according to audio analysis by the Swedish broadcaster.
It is unclear who shouts the phrase. Police say the motive behind the crime is still being investigated.
Hashem Shams, who recorded and published the video, said in an Instagram story on Tuesday: “I was there, and I cannot understand what happened. I am grateful to be alive, but my thoughts go out above all to those who did not, to those who were injured and to all the relatives who have lost someone they love.
“No one should have to experience something like this. I feel sadness, shock and a great powerlessness, but I also want to express my sympathy and support to all those affected.”
Sweden school shooter appears to shout ‘You will get out of Europe’Alex Croft7 February 2025 12:27
Syrian refugee among shooting victims is described as a ‘hero’A Syrian refugeee who was named as among those shot dead in the school shooting in Sweden has been described as a “hero”.
Jonatan Suaw, 29, told local media Salim Iskef, 29, who was named in Swedish reports as among the victims of the horror attack, had been working as his personal assistant for a year while he studied to become a nurse.
Speaking at a memorial site outside Risbergska School, Mr Suaw, who is unable to walk, said Mr Iskef would carry him when he has been unable to move.
Speaking of Mr Iskef, Mr Suaw told Swedish publication Expressen: “He wanted to educate himself and continue working with people like me. I have lost my hero… He treated me like a human being.”
Alex Croft7 February 2025 11:41
