Two people in the multicultural city of Malmö in southern Sweden have been arrested following a large explosion at a restaurant on Friday around 2 a.m.
The explosion has been described in a report by Swedish television broadcaster SVT as “heavy”, with pictures of the aftermath of the blast showing widespread damage to the interior of the restaurant.
According to the report, the explosion was so large it shattered the windows of several other buildings in the vicinity, with the internal commander of the police in Malmö, Jerker Olsson, confirming that two individuals had been arrested in connection with what he termed “grossly perilous destruction”.
“It is very extensive damage so it must have been a heavy charge that exploded,” Olsson said. Police say they were tipped off to the incident through an automatic alarm system and say that fortunately no one, including emergency services personnel, was injured as a result of the powerful explosion.
Police say that the explosion is not the first time this particular restaurant has been targetted, noting that back in late April, an individual had attempted to firebomb the building with a molotov cocktail, but the fire was quickly put out and no-one was injured as a result.
The explosion comes after a wave of similar incidents in Malmö and across the country in the past several months, including a case last month that saw a 12-year-old injured as a result of shattered glass while she slept.
In the first three months of 2019, police say that explosions across the country have risen compared to the same period last year, from 37 incidents in 2018 to 47 this year.
Different incidents have involved different kinds of explosives, some which have simply been firecrackers, and others that have been either hand grenades or more heavy explosives. One of the largest explosive attacks occurred in October of 2017 when a police station in Helsingborg was bombed, leading to Swedish prime minister Stefan Löfven labelling the incident an “attack against our democracy.”