Swedish FM attacked, stabbed

2003-09-11 07:12

Stockholm, Sweden - Anna Lindh, Sweden's popular foreign minister who was stabbed repeatedly while shopping in an exclusive department store in Stockholm, remained in critical condition after nine hours of surgery, doctors said early on Thursday morning.

Lindh, who was attacked on Wednesday, was taken to the Karolinska Hospital and went into surgery at 17:00 (15:00 GMT).

"The foreign minister's condition, right now, is somewhat improved, but still critical," Dr Goeran Wallinn said, adding she had suffered from severe internal bleeding and injuries to her liver and stomach.

Lindh was stabbed in the stomach, chest and arm, and police were searching for a man wearing a camouflage jacket who fled the store.

No bodyguard

The attack on Lindh on Wednesday, a popular government minister, shocked a nation that has long prided itself on the accessibility of its politicians. Like many officials, she didn't use a bodyguard.

Police said they didn't believe the attack was politically motivated, but it stirred memories of the unsolved murder of Prime Minister Olof Palme, who was killed while walking home from a cinema with his wife in 1986.

The attack cast a pall over the country's upcoming referendum to decide whether to adopt the euro, and campaigning on the issue was postponed for at least a day. It wasn't known if Sunday's referendum vote would be delayed.

Jan Larssen, speaking for the government, said the "issue had been raised" but added it would be a "very big, complicated project to move an election day."

Supporter of the Euro

Lindh, 46, who is No 3 in the government and a leading supporter of the European Union's common currency, has often been touted as a possible successor to Prime Minister Goeran Persson.

Persson said security was being re-examined in the wake of the stabbing, which he called an assault on the Scandinavian country's tradition of openness.

"The attack is an attack on our open society and because of this, I am feeling great anger and dismay," he said, adding that security around government buildings had been tightened.

"For some people, this may bring back all the terrible memories of years back when Prime Minister Olof Palme was killed," said Green Party leader Per Eriksson. "This may very well lead to Swedish politicians having to have bodyguards from now on."

Only Persson and Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf have personal security personnel, said Lars Danielsson, a senior government aide.

He said the government was reassessing security, but didn't say if ministers would be provided with bodyguards.

"In our system, it's up to the responsible authorities to make the assessments in issues like this," he said. "I don't think there is any inclination on our part to change that policy."

Politicians in Scandinavia are often seen walking along the street or riding subways without police protection. In neighbouring Denmark, Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller can be spotted grocery shopping on Saturdays without police protection.

Scandinavia is relatively immune to political violence, unlike other parts of Europe. Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic was assassinated in March by allies of Slobodan Milosevic seeking to topple his pro-Western government. In the Netherlands, an animal rights activist shot anti-immigration politician Pim Fortuyn to death in May 2002.

Lindh was shopping at the upscale Nordiska Kompaniet department store, blocks away from the parliament building, when she was stabbed just before 16:00 on Wednesday, shopper Hanna Sundberg said.

Man chased her

Sundberg said she saw a man chase Lindh up an escalator.

"She fell on the floor and the man was stabbing her in the stomach," she said. "When he ran away, he threw the knife away."

Sundberg ran to Lindh and the politician told her: "God, he has stabbed me in the stomach!" Then, Sundberg said she saw blood.

A reporter saw Lindh rushed from the building on a stretcher by three paramedics, with police surrounding her. The foreign minister appeared barely conscious, breathing heavily into an oxygen mask as paramedics loaded her into an ambulance.

Police are analysing the store's security videotapes to learn more about the assault.

Lindh has been head of the Foreign Ministry since 1998, serving as environmental minister before that. She was a member of the Riksdag, or parliament, from 1982-1985. She is married and has two children.

Associated Press reporters Karl Ritter and Tommy Grandell contributed to this report.

- AP