Creeping Islamism in Scandinavia

The despicable but successful attacks in Norway by Anders Breivik stand in contrast to Al-Qaeda’s difficulties in carrying out similar dramatic acts of terror. This may cause the threat from anti-Muslim extremism to rise above radical Islam in the minds of the Western public. There is a risk that growing Islamist trends in Scandinavia will be overshadowed because of the shock caused by Breivik’s attacks.

Denmark has been a top terrorist target since the publication of the cartoons denigrating Mohammed. On January 1, 2010, a Somali member of al-Shabaab tried to murder the cartoonist, Kurt Westergaard, with an axe at his home. Two terrorists connected to Lashkar-e-Taiba were arrested in Chicago in November 2009, one of which had conducted surveillance in Denmark in preparation for an attack. In September 2010, a Chechen accidentally set off his letter bomb in a hotel bathroom in Copenhagen. He was found with the address of the newspaper that published the cartoons.

Norway is understandably fixated on right-wing extremism following Breivik’s attacks, but it is also dealing with a serious Islamist problem. In September, three members of Al-Qaeda were arrested while planning attacks in Norway. The cell was tied to a plot to bomb New York City subways in 2009, and to attack a British shopping mall in April 2009. In February 2008, six suspected terrorists were arrested in Oslo and Stockholm, Sweden for financing terrorism and planning attacks. At least five Somali-Norwegians have been recruited by al-Shabaab, with one killed in Somalia in March.

In late 2008 and early 2009, Muslim riots occurred in response to Israel’s offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Participants made anti-Semitic remarks and called for the destruction of Israel. In February 2010, there were protests against the publication of cartoons mocking Mohammed in a Norwegian newspaper. One of the speakers, Mohyeldeen Mohammad, warned that Norway could experience its own 9/11 for the act. He is now being educated in Saudi Arabia. Luckily, a small group of Muslims protested his remarks.

There is also concern about extremism in Norwegian Islamic schools. In June 2009, an imam in Drammen was arrested for striking students between 6 and 12 years old with a cane. He had been abusing the children since 2002, and was also violent towards children at several mosques. Law enforcement suspects that other imams are abusing the children. This is a problem that is not isolated to Norway. Undercover journalists in Britain discovered abuse and extremist indoctrination at a school in Birmingham and a mosque in West Yorkshire. Similar abuse was discovered at other Islamic schools in 2008.

The story is the same with Sweden. Over 30 Somali-Swedes have joined al-Shabaab in the past two years. The Al-Qaeda affiliate is known to be fundraising in the country. On December 11, there were two bombings in Stockholm, killing the Iraqi perpetrator and injuring two civilians. Al-Qaeda in Iraq claimed responsibility. Journalist Per Gudmundson estimates that there are at least 1,500 Islamic extremists in Sweden, about 100-200 of which are involved in terrorist-related activity.

In June 2010, there were riots for two days in Rinkeby, a city often referred to as “Little Mogadishu” because of its large Somali immigrant population. About 100 youth rioted for two days when they were not allowed into a school dance. Cars were set on fire, and the school was burned down. Policemen and fire fighters had stones thrown at them, and the rioters also tried to set the local police station on fire. One eyewitness described it as a “war zone.” The Swedish Prime Minister had to personally appeal for calm.

Sweden’s third largest city, Malmo, is quickly changing because of its fast-growing Muslim population. The Jewish community feels intimidated, and is now only half the size of what it was 20 years ago. On the other hand, Malmo is now one-fourth Muslim. When CBN did a report on Malmo, no Jewish leaders felt safe enough to go on the record. One Holocaust survivor, Judith Popinski, said “The hatreds of the Middle East have come to Malmo.”

“Muslim schoolchildren often ignore me now when I talk about my experiences in the camps. It is because of what their parents tell them about Jews,” she told the Telegraph.

In Rosengard, the Muslim-majority part of the city, crime is out of control and up to 70 percent are unemployed. It is common for emergency personnel to require police escort in order to enter the area. The lack of assimilation by the Muslim minority in Sweden must be dealt with, as journalist Lars Hedegaard predicts that a majority of the country’s population will be Muslim by 2049.

The fact that anti-Muslim extremists do exist should not result in a dismissal of the problems Scandinavia and Europe as a whole face with Islamism and assimilation. Individuals like Breivik deserve no sympathy, and must be swiftly dealt with before committing acts of terror. However, if extremists of his ilk get all the attention, then Breivik will have unwittingly strengthened their hand.