In a statistical revelation the investigative news programme Kalla Fakta brands as shocking, journalists have determined that around 95 percent of robberies and violent crimes in Sweden are never solved. It also reported that the average police officer solves three crimes per year.

The Local newspaper reports that one in seven Swedes was a victim of crime in 2007. Robberies and violent crimes made up 75 percent of all reported crimes in Sweden last year, which added up to around 900,000. Police managed to solve 5.8 percent of them.

Bengt Svenson, the national police chief, defended his department saying: “There is often very little of value to work with. When it comes to theft, there are no witnesses, and victims often don’t know Read the full story

A recent spate of gang violence has flared up again in the southern Swedish town of Malmo when a grenade exploded in an apartment block. The grenade, which was thrown against the wall of an apartment building just after midnight, was powerful enough to smash a few windows and damage a section of the building’s exterior but no one was hurt.

Mikael Persson of the Skane police confirmed to The Local that the explosion was connected to organised gang activity in the Malmo area. The apartment targeted by the grenade was empty at the time of the attack, which was followed by rounds of gunfire. Although no one has been arrested, a 23 year-old resident of the apartment block was taken in by police for questioning.

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A small village in Sweden became the site of unexpected violence on Sunday night when seven people were assaulted on the streets. According to reports in The Local, a neo-Nazi group attacked people on their way to a festival promoting feminism, leaving one man in need of hospitalisation.

Farnebo Community College hosted a feminist festival which lasted for three days. The festival has been held every year in Osterfarnebo for the past eight years and draws people into the town from across the country.

A group of young people between 17 and 25 years old reportedly left the festival around one o’clock in the morning.

Police investigator Kalju Poltrago told a local newspaper: “The men drove around the area in a car, shouting ‘sieg heil’ and doing Nazi salutes.”

Police have yet to identify the gang. “Witnesses described how a group of Nazis, or skinheads, got out of a car which was circling the area. After shouting ‘sieg heil’ and doing the Nazi salute the men then proceeded to assault the teenagers who had exited the college” said Poltrago.

The group was assaulted with metal pipes. “One girl was beaten bloody and another thirty year old man was battered while he lay on the ground. He was injured so badly that he had to be rushed to the local hospital for treatment,” said Poltrago.

Just 700 people live in Osterfarnebo, which is located beside a national park.

This May Day ranked among the bloodiest in the history of Helsinki according to Finnish Police reports noted in the Finnish News Agency (STT).

Local police are still investigating ten serious violent crimes which occurred in the capital on Wednesday and Thursday.

Inspector Jari Koski from the Helsinki police said about the violence: “It is a wonder that nobody died.”

Among the ten violent incidents over the two day period were several knifings as well as an incident in which a man was stabbed in the neck with a used syringe.

May Day was celebrated on Wednesday night and Thursday with gatherings of tens of thousands of people in downtown Helsinki.

According to those who were present at the EuroMayDay rally on Wednesday night, police were aggressively provoking those present – particularly the organisers.

According to one of the media spokespeople for the event, Dan Koivusalo, the police caused problems before the bottles starting flying.

“I think it is incomprehensible that the police stopped a well run demonstration and the first people they detained were those responsible for keeping order,” Mr Koivusalo said.

Helsinki police officer Inspector Petri Juvonen told the STT that ten people were arrested for fighting the police during the May Day eve rally.

“Mainly there was bottle throwing. I am not sure if all of it was in connection with the demonstration,” Inspector Juvonen said. He didn’t comment on any injuries among the police force.

Police arrested 27 demonstrators at the EuroMayDay rally but they were all released on Thursday. Police estimate that 500 people took part in the rallies.

Fuel protests in Iceland are getting hot, according to reports by CNN. Retired truck driver Halldor Sigurgson captured the essence of the protests on video, the police barricades, the canisters of gas flying through the air and the faces of Icelanders vivid with the spirit of protest.

“This is the first time in a long time we have seen in Iceland violence against protestors,” Halldor Sigurgson told CNN, adding “we are not used to violence against groups of people at all.”

The police in Iceland found themselves facing hundreds of truckers on the roads leading to Reykjavik last week. The majority of those protesting were truck drivers who are suffering from the high cost of fuel and from new regulations imposed by the EU on how long they can drive without resting.

The protest has been escalating in the past few weeks. Initially, the population showed their support to the truckers by honking their horns in front of the parliament building.

A number of factors have made the problem more severe. All over the world, the cost of crude oil is rising and the poor value of Icelandic currency has made it even more costly to import fuel. In addition, government taxes in Iceland almost double the price of oil at the pumps.

The Icelandic krona is showing signs of regaining some of its strength, but fuel prices have yet to significantly fall from their recent all-time highs. Other countries are facing similar situations.