A Danish court has convicted two Swedish men of terrorism and attempted murder for detonating hand grenades near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen in October 2024. The Copenhagen City Court sentenced the 18-year-old to 12 years in prison and the 21-year-old to 14 years, according to Swedish news agency TT. The pair were said to be acting on behalf of a criminal gang.
In the early hours of October 2, 2024, the two men threw two hand grenades towards the Israeli embassy. The devices did not reach their target but detonated on the terrace of a nearby residential building, inhabited by a family with children. No one was injured. The explosions occurred about 100 metres from the embassy, located in an area with other embassies and a Jewish school, which was closed at the time.
The men admitted to throwing the grenades but claimed they did it for money and denied any ideological motivation to attack an Israeli institution. The court was divided on the terrorism conviction, with two judges and four jurors finding them guilty, while one judge and two jurors disagreed.
The younger man also faces charges in Sweden for an attack on the Israeli embassy in Stockholm the day before the Danish attack. The older man faces criminal charges in connection with another attack in Sweden. Lawyers for both men said they would appeal the verdicts, which include deportation to Sweden after their prison sentences.
