
Malmo, Sweden, is known as a hotspot of anti-Israel protests. These protests take place on a weekly basis, and sometimes include rioting, calls to harm Jews and Israelis, burning Israeli flags, and more.
Malmo has a high concentration of immigrants from Syria, Lebanon, Iran, and Iraq.
On October 7, 2023, the day Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and kidnapping around 250, anti-Israel sources in Malmo came out in celebration of the massacre.
At the same time, alongside the protests in Malmo, in recent months there have been increased calls by global jihadist and extremist Islamic sources to carry out terror attacks against Western targets, including specific threats against Israelis and Jews around the world, with an emphasis on events with a high media profile. In this context, it will be noted that on March 19, it was announced that two ISIS terrorists were arrested for planning to carry out a terror attack at the Swedish Parliament.
These developments raise well-founded concerns that terror sources will use the protests and the anti-Israel atmosphere in order to carry out attacks on Israelis arriving at the Eurovision Song Contest. Swedish authorities have increased security around Malmo, but it should be noted that unlike the Israeli delegation to the contest, Israeli visitors do not receive special security.
In light of this, the National Security Council is raising the level of the travel alert to Malmo, Sweden, from Level 2 (potential threat) to Level 3 (moderate threat), and recommending that Israelis who are planning to visit the city reconsider the necessity of their trip. The travel warning is limited to the Eurovision contest period, and in accordance with assessments of the situation.
In addition, visitors are asked to download the Home Front app, so as to be able to receive notifications from the National Security Council, as well as in real time, if there is a security incident.