A report has claimed that an area in the Swedish city of Borås has seen the rise of Islamisation due to the arrival of large numbers of Somalian migrants.
The report claims that the district of Norrby, identified as a “vulnerable area” — or no-go zone — by Swedish police, has seen a process of Islamisation in recent years, with 37 per cent of its inhabitants having been born overseas and 20 per cent of them being from Somalia, Nyheter Idag reports.
Due to the high number of Somalians, the report claims that Somali clans have taken root in Norrby, with some using their “own legal order” and women often absent in public life, such as in the local Somali Association.
“Veil-wearing has already started to occur in pre-school already at the age of one,” the report states, and goes on to claim that so-called “Morality Police” attack women who refuse to wear a veil in the area.
Islamic radicalisation is also an issue in the area, with several residents travelling to the Middle East in recent years to fight for jihadist groups such as the Islamic State. Some in the area have also said they were concerned returning jihadists could be viewed as war heroes in Norrby.
Local councillor and member of the populist Sweden Democrats (SD) Andreas Exner said the report is concerning, and proves what he and his colleagues had stated for a long time while receiving “epithets” from political opponents as a result.
“It should be remembered that not everyone in Norrby is a criminal. But everyone who lives there is affected. We see daily how people living in these areas are exposed to violence, threats, and crime. They are the real losers,” he said.
Earlier this year, the Swedish National Defence College announced that it would be examining the influence of radical Islamic ideology in areas across Sweden, naming Norrby as one of the areas to be studied.
“Norrby is an area that has had some of the biggest problems. We will take it from there. Then, we have not decided entirely on what other areas we will look at,” analyst Filip Ahlin said.