Still, “police haven’t confirmed Saturday’s attack was motivated by Islamist views.” Of course. It must have been Tim McVeigh. “Swedes shocked by 1st terror attack in 3 decades,” from the Associated Press, December 12 (thanks to Steve):
STOCKHOLM — No one died except for the suspected bomber, but two explosions in Sweden’s capital tore at the fabric of this tolerant and open nation — a society that hadn’t seen a terrorist attack in more than three decades. […]
While police haven’t confirmed Saturday’s attack was motivated by Islamist views, an audio file sent to Swedish news agency TT shortly before the blast referred to jihad, Sweden’s military presence in Afghanistan and a cartoon by a Swedish artist that depicted the Prophet Muhammad as a dog, enraging the Muslim world.
It hasn’t been verified that the speaker is the person who set off the explosive, but police have said they are investigating that possibility.
“Now the Islamic state has been created. We now exist here in Europe and in Sweden. We are a reality,” the voice said in the file, submitted to The Associated Press by TT. “I don’t want to say more about this. Our actions will speak for themselves.”
Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt on Sunday said the attack was “unacceptable” but urged Swedes not to jump to “premature conclusions” that “create tension which paints pictures that are then difficult to change.”…
In other words, despite the jihadi’s explicit Islamic motivations, don’t get the idea that this has anything to do with Islam.
The 2007 drawing of the Prophet Muhammad by Lars Vilks has raised tensions before in Sweden. In May, Vilks was assaulted while giving a speech in Uppsala, and vandals unsuccessfully tried to burn down his home in southern Sweden….
On Sunday, about 100 people assembled in chilly central Stockholm for a peaceful demonstration organized by Swedish Muslims for Peace and Justice.
“We felt a responsibility to sharply condemn the attack, but it would be naive to think that yesterday’s events aren’t going to have a negative effect on the perception of Muslims in Sweden,” said Samaa Sarsour, 26, one of the main organizers of the rally. She urged the crowd to punch the air and kick out their feet in a display of defiance against the hijacking of religion by extremists….
Yes, of course, Samaa. It’s all about you. It’s all about “backlash.” It’s all about playing the victim and evading responsibility, no matter what the jihadis do.