Icelandic foreign minister Ossur Skarphedinsson has told his Palestinian colleagues at their meeting this week in Ramallah that the Icelandic government is enthusiastic to support Palestinian independence, should the proposed motion be put before the United Nations this autumn. Read the full story

The Paramedic Training School, Sjukraflutningaskolinn, and the Red Cross of Iceland, Raudi kross Islands, are planning to host a course in CPR for Palestinian paramedics, nurses and doctors in September, according to the main website of the Akureyri Hospital. Read the full story

The Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs this week criticised Swedish democracy and freedom of speech, following an article in Aftonbladet in which the author accuses the Israeli army of murdering young Palestinians to steal and trade their organs. Read the full story

In the wake of the ongoing conflict involving Israel and Hamas militants operating from the Gaza Strip, Sweden has been experiencing a rash of anti-Semitic attacks throughout the country. Such is the escalation in incidents against Jews that Swedish police have put themselves on heightened alert, and are closely watching prominent Jewish sites. Read the full story

Around 30 people are currently protesting outside the Icelandic parliament building. The protesters are angry that Iceland has not been outspoken in its criticism of Israel’s current military operations in the Gaza Strip, according to MBL.is. Read the full story

Norway’s government has voted to send NOK 30 million worth of humanitarian relief to Gaza in the wake of Israeli attacks on the region. Norway’s Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere stated: “We are extremely concerned about the precarious humanitarian situation in Gaza.” He added that it is essential to guarantee the aid actually reaches those in Gaza who need it. Read the full story

Insisting that Israel’s ground invasion will seriously hinder diplomatic efforts to find a long-term peaceful compromise between the Israelis and Palestinians, the governments of both Norway and Sweden condemned the Gaza attacks in the strongest possible terms. Read the full story

A Palestinian gunman shot and injured two Israeli men who were working at a shopping centre in the Danish town of Odense, 105 miles west of Copenhagen. Both Israeli men were in their 20s, according to police spokesman Lars Thede, who refused to speculate on the likelihood that the shootings were a response to Israel’s attacks on Gaza. Read the full story

The BBC has covered the story of the group of Palestinian refugees who recently moved from a camp in Iraq to Akranes, a short distance north of the Icelandic capital, Reykjavik.

The report features an interview with Foreign Minister Ingibjorg Solrun Gisladottir, stating that single mothers do well in Iceland and that she has high hopes for the refugees’ integration and Read the full story

Icelandic news website, Visir.is reports that the Palestinian refugees who arrived in Iceland late Monday evening were surprisingly well given the long journey they had undertaken from Iraq – so says Linda Bjork Gudrunardottir, the refugee project manager.

Visir contacted Gudrunardottir Tuesday morning because she was among the group accompanying the refugees on the last leg of their trip, from London Read the full story