Man charged for terror over arson attack on Jewish woman’s home

A 21-year-old man was yesterday charged for terror after setting fire to an address in Copenhagen where a Jewish woman lived, media including DR reported.

The proceedings at Copenhagen City Court took place behind closed doors on the judge’s order, meaning details of the case are sparse and the identities of both the accused and the victim are withheld. The incident is reported to have happened in May.

However, police intelligence agency PET later stated that the accused had a “relation” to organised crime gang Loyal to Familia (LTF).

PET chief Finn Borch Andersen told DR it was “concerning” that the gang, which is primarily known for organised crime related to weapons and drug dealing, now appeared to have attached itself to terrorism.

“PET has long warned of an increased terrorist threat against Jewish and Israeli targets in Denmark, especially in light of the conflict in Israel and Gaza. Due to the ongoing investigation, there are limits to what I can say about the case,” Andersen said.

“But it is a serious matter if a person in Denmark is targeted for terrorism because of their Jewish background. It is also concerning that we are again seeing connections to LTF in terrorism cases,” he added. 

Veteran right-wing MP announces retirement

Søren Espersen, the veteran right-wing member of parliament who once had a number of prominent spokesperson roles with the Danish People’s Party, will retire after the next election, he confirmed to newswire RItzau.

Espersen, 71, was first elected to parliament in 2005 and switched party to the Denmark Democrats in 2022.

“I have always believed that you should stop while things are going well and you’re still at the top. I don’t know if that’s the case for me, but I’ve always said I don’t want to end up crawling out of Christiansborg,” he said in reference to the Danish parliament.

“I am physically and mentally well and I’m looking forward to seeing more of the world. I’ve been in this environment for 30 years,” he added.

Germany insists tighter border checks in line with EU rules

Germany on Tuesday insisted its move to launch border controls with its nine neighbouring countries to stop irregular migrants is in line with the EU’s rules and not an attempt to go it alone.

Berlin would not take unilateral measures “that could harm the European Union”, Interior Minister Nancy Faeser said after Poland slammed the decision and the EU cautioned that border checks could only be introduced as an “exceptional” measure.

Faeser on Monday announced that border controls already in place with Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland would be extended to the borders with France, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark for an initial six months.

READ ALSO: How Germany’s increased border checks will affect travel from neighbouring countries

Winter 2024 Covid-19 and influenza vaccination programmes announced

Health authorities in Denmark have set out this year’s vaccination programmes for Covid-19 and influenza, with elderly and at-risk persons to be offered vaccination.

All persons in Denmark over the age of 65 will be offered vaccination against influenza and Covid-19 this autumn, the Central Jutland regional health authority said in a statement on Tuesday.

Vaccinations will be available from October 1st, with a first round of invitations having been sent to over-85s on Tuesday.

More details here.