Sweden at risk of becoming terrorist base

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Sweden is in danger of becoming a recruiting center for terrorists planning attacks on other countries, it was reported Monday.

At least 20 Swedes, most with suspected links to Islamic extremists, have been arrested world wide on suspicion of terror since 2001, The Local reported.

Sweden’s security service, Sapo, said the country could be used to recruit, finance and plan attacks elsewhere, The Local reported.

Swedes arrested for terrorist activities since 2002 include Mirsad Bektasevic, jailed for eight years in Bosnia, and Oussama Kassir, suspected by U.S. authorities of helping set up a terrorist training camp in Oregon.

Two other people convicted thus far under 2003 Swedish terror laws were found to have aided Ansar al-Islam, a Sunni Islamist terror group in northern Iraq, The Local reported.