Emotional Swedish Crown Princess At Memorial for Örebro School Shooting Victims
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
OREBRO, SWEDEN (Worthy News) – Visibly moved attended Swedish Crown Princess Victoria and her husband, Prince Daniel, a memorial service Sunday near the Risbergska School in Örebro, the scene of the Nordic nation’s deadliest shooting in its recent history.
The service at the crowded Längbro Church honored the seven women and three men who lost their lives in Tuesday’s attack at the school for adult education in this city, about 200 kilometers (125 miles) west of Stockholm, the capital.
The gunman also died, reportedly by suicide, according to police. The victims ranged in age from 28 to 68, investigators said.
Church of Sweden Archbishop Martin Modéus spoke about “supporting each other” in Sweden’s unprecedented post-war crisis situation.
One of those present was a woman only identified as Eva, who lives opposite the school and saw the shooting from her window. “I didn’t really understand what was happening, but now you’ve really seen the extent of it. One of my friends was shot and didn’t survive,” she added.
After the memorial service, Crown Princess Victoria told reporters that she hopes those impacted by the shootings “feel warmth, love, and consideration that can possibly carry them forward.”
With tears in her eyes, she was among those laying flowers for the victims of the mass shooting at a makeshift memorial site.
MOTIVE QUESTIONED
While they prayed and remembered the victims, authorities were still trying to determine a motive for the attack.
Swedish media have reported that the gunman was a 35-year-old unemployed man with “a history of mental health issues.”
Some sources suggest he may have been a former student at the school, but police have not officially confirmed his identity.
With a nation in mourning, questions have been asked why a country known for high living standards also has one of the highest rates of gun violence in the European Union.
Critical Swedes have blamed the violence on massive immigration, boosting the popularity of anti-immigrant politicians.
Yet some immigrants said the massacre apparently committed by a Swede at a school frequented by migrants reinforced the sense that they are no longer welcome.“When we came to Sweden, it felt like a safe country; we could adapt to society,” said Elia, who fled Syria. “But we don’t have that same feeling of security anymore. There are things happening all the time.”
Last week’s shooting underscored concerns about more tensions in a traditionally open nation that recently became part of the NATO military alliance.
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