Sweden's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that one of its employees has died. Getty Images
Sweden's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that one of its employees has died. Getty Images
Sweden's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that one of its employees has died. Getty Images
Sweden's Foreign Ministry has confirmed that one of its employees has died. Getty Images

Swedish diplomat found dead days after arrest on espionage charges


Tariq Tahir
  • English
  • Arabic

A Swedish diplomat has been found dead days after he was released following his arrest in Stockholm on charges of spying, his lawyer has said.

The Scandinavian nation's security service Sapo made the arrest on Sunday, but gave no details about the case or the suspect's identity when it was announced on Monday.

Broadcaster SVT reported the following day that the man was a top diplomat who had served at several Swedish embassies. It said that Sapo was investigating a potential connection to the resignation of the government's national security adviser last week. The man was still being treated as a suspect after his release, prosecutors said.

The diplomat's lawyer, Anton Strand, has now confirmed his client was the diplomat arrested, though he declined to comment on the cause of the man’s death.

"I heard the tragic news this morning and my thoughts go to his family," said Mr Strand.

The lawyer has previously said that his client denied the allegations against him and maintained "that he has done nothing wrong".

Mr Strand also said his client had gone to a hospital after being released on Wednesday and reported police for using excessive force during his arrest but did not provide details about the extent of the injuries.

Police said they had opened an investigation into the death, but "there is no suspicion a crime has been committed".

Swedish journalist Joakim Medin is awaiting trial in Turkey. AFP
Swedish journalist Joakim Medin is awaiting trial in Turkey. AFP

Sweden's Foreign Ministry confirmed that one of its employees had died but declined to comment further.

"We can regrettably confirm that an employee of the foreign service has passed away,” said the ministry. “Out of concern for the relatives we will refrain from giving further detail."

Prosecutors said the arrest of the diplomat, and that of Swedish citizen who acted as representative for Kurds in northern Syria, were not linked to a journalist facing terrorism charges in Turkey.

Joakim Medin is currently in custody in Turkey awaiting trial on a charge of being a member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), an allegation he denies.

Mr Medin was detained at Istanbul airport on March 27 when he flew in to cover mass protests gripping Turkey.

A Turkish court last month handed the 40-year-old an 11-month suspended sentence on charges of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In order to persuade Turkey to drop its veto when Sweden applied to join NATO, the countries made a deal that included increased collaboration on "terrorism".

SVT also reported this week that Sapo was investigating whether the case was connected to a scandal that hit Swedish National Security Adviser Tobias Thyberg.

Mr Thyberg resigned within hours of his May 8 appointment after "sensitive" photos of him from a dating app were sent anonymously to media and the government.

SVT, which has not specified its sources, said the diplomat arrested was not Mr Thyberg, who served as Sweden's ambassador to Ukraine and Afghanistan among other positions over a 24-year career.

THE%C2%A0SPECS
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Profile

Company: Justmop.com

Date started: December 2015

Founders: Kerem Kuyucu and Cagatay Ozcan

Sector: Technology and home services

Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers, Dubai

Size: 55 employees and 100,000 cleaning requests a month

Funding:  The company’s investors include Collective Spark, Faith Capital Holding, Oak Capital, VentureFriends, and 500 Startups. 

Company%20profile
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Desert Warrior

Starring: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Ben Kingsley

Director: Rupert Wyatt

Rating: 3/5

The specs: 2018 Dodge Durango SRT

Price, base / as tested: Dh259,000

Engine: 6.4-litre V8

Power: 475hp @ 6,000rpm

Torque: 640Nm @ 4,300rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km

Trump v Khan

2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US

2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks

2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit

2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”

2022:  Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency

July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”

Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.

Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”

The%20specs%20
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Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

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Friday, February 1
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Who: Real Madrid v Liverpool
Where: NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium, Kiev, Ukraine
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RESULT

Bayern Munich 5 Eintrracht Frankfurt 2
Bayern:
 Goretzka (17'), Müller (41'), Lewandowski (46'), Davies (61'), Hinteregger (74' og)    
Frankfurt: Hinteregger (52', 55')

Red flags
  • Promises of high, fixed or 'guaranteed' returns.
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  • Lack of clear information, vague language, no access to audited financials.
  • Overseas companies targeting investors in other jurisdictions - this can make legal recovery difficult.
  • Hard-selling tactics - creating urgency, offering 'exclusive' deals.

Courtesy: Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching

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Classification of skills

A worker is categorised as skilled by the MOHRE based on nine levels given in the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO) issued by the International Labour Organisation. 

A skilled worker would be someone at a professional level (levels 1 – 5) which includes managers, professionals, technicians and associate professionals, clerical support workers, and service and sales workers.

The worker must also have an attested educational certificate higher than secondary or an equivalent certification, and earn a monthly salary of at least Dh4,000. 

BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

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Alia’s winning experiment examined how genes might change under the stresses caused by being in space, such as cosmic radiation and microgravity.

Her samples were placed in a machine on board the International Space Station. called a miniPCR thermal cycler, which can copy DNA multiple times.

After the samples were examined on return to Earth, scientists were able to successfully detect changes caused by being in space in the way DNA transmits instructions through proteins and other molecules in living organisms.

Although Alia’s samples were taken from nematode worms, the results have much bigger long term applications, especially for human space flight and long term missions, such as to Mars.

It also means that the first DNA experiments using human genomes can now be carried out on the ISS.

 

Dust and sand storms compared

Sand storm

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  • Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
  • Travel distance: Limited 
  • Source: Open desert areas with strong winds

Dust storm

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  • Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
  • Duration: Can linger for days
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'The worst thing you can eat'

Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.

Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines: 

Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.

Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.

Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.

Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.

Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

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About Takalam

Date started: early 2020

Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh

Based: Abu Dhabi

Sector: HealthTech and wellness

Number of staff: 4

Funding to date: Bootstrapped

US tops drug cost charts

The study of 13 essential drugs showed costs in the United States were about 300 per cent higher than the global average, followed by Germany at 126 per cent and 122 per cent in the UAE.

Thailand, Kenya and Malaysia were rated as nations with the lowest costs, about 90 per cent cheaper.

In the case of insulin, diabetic patients in the US paid five and a half times the global average, while in the UAE the costs are about 50 per cent higher than the median price of branded and generic drugs.

Some of the costliest drugs worldwide include Lipitor for high cholesterol. 

The study’s price index placed the US at an exorbitant 2,170 per cent higher for Lipitor than the average global price and the UAE at the eighth spot globally with costs 252 per cent higher.

High blood pressure medication Zestril was also more than 2,680 per cent higher in the US and the UAE price was 187 per cent higher than the global price.

NYBL PROFILE

Company name: Nybl 

Date started: November 2018

Founder: Noor Alnahhas, Michael LeTan, Hafsa Yazdni, Sufyaan Abdul Haseeb, Waleed Rifaat, Mohammed Shono

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Software Technology / Artificial Intelligence

Initial investment: $500,000

Funding round: Series B (raising $5m)

Partners/Incubators: Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 4, Dubai Future Accelerators Cohort 6, AI Venture Labs Cohort 1, Microsoft Scale-up 

Match info

Manchester United 1
Fred (18')

Wolves 1
Moutinho (53')

LIVING IN...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

Remaining Fixtures

Wednesday: West Indies v Scotland
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Sunday: Final

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Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist

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Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner

Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister

Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster

 

GAC GS8 Specs

Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo

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Company Profile

Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million

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