Sweden is preparing its people for a “possible war.” An Iraqi girl will have to “join the army.”

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[size=52]Sweden is preparing its people for a “possible war.” An Iraqi girl will have to “join the army.”[/size]

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01-19-2024
Sweden is making exceptional and unprecedented preparations regarding recruitment of young people and returning what is called the civil service to train for many activities in preparation for “any imminent war.” It has begun recruiting some young people “against their will” after recruitment had been limited to previous years. Only for those who wish to do so, while immigrants and residents there, including Iraqis, speak of a “lack of sense of belonging” even if they are to serve in national duty.
Sweden is known as historically neutral, but it has begun to prioritize civil defense amid fears of preparing for a possible war.[/size]
[size=45]A number of students received a questionnaire to determine whether they would accept to be conscripted for military service, at a time when only a year and a half had passed since Sweden submitted its application to join NATO, which represents a sharp change in the historically neutral country’s approach to the field of defense and international relations, according to The Guardian newspaper.[/size]
[size=45]But in recent weeks, a looming sense of potential conflict has gripped the country, with citizens warned to prepare themselves for the possibility of war.[/size]
[size=45]Although not everyone will be required to do military service – only a small percentage of the population is called up against their will – as of Friday, the government is also resuming compulsory civil service, a form of national service that was dismantled after the Cold War.[/size]
[size=45]About 100,000 young people will be called up for military service next year – about 10% of whom will do so despite not wanting to. In the past, only those who expressed an interest in serving were asked to do so, but insufficient numbers last year led to To change policy by the authorities.[/size]
[size=45]The new mandatory civilian duty will initially only apply to those trained in emergency services and electricity provision, but it represents the first step in what is expected to be a much wider national service programme.[/size]
[size=45]Carl Oskar Bohlen, Sweden's civil defense minister - who declared to the conference that "there could be war in Sweden" - said a full return to civilian duty was being considered in the future.[/size]
[size=45]He said Friday's announcement represents the reactivation of civic duty for the first time since it ended in 2008. "The reactivation will take place in two sectors, first and foremost in municipal rescue services," he added.[/size]
[size=45]Many teenagers say their generation has been shaken by a series of world events. Leah Bockhoy, 18, supports the concept of national service in general, but says her engagements have changed dramatically in the past two years: “Things have become more serious. It's scary, especially since we've been A far cry from the war in Sweden.”[/size]
[size=45]Zahraa Al-Baroudi, 18 years old, who moved from Iraq to Sweden 10 years ago and now lives in Malmö, has witnessed a radical change in the international perception of Sweden. If she had been forced to perform national service, she would have done so, but not by choice.[/size]
[size=45]She said society would always treat her as an outsider: “I feel like I will never be a citizen and I can never change that – no matter what training or job I do, or if I do civil or military service.”[/size]
[size=45]Samrand Faik, who works with youth in the Järva district of Stockholm, said that for many of the young people he spoke to, especially those angry at the government's inaction over a series of Holy Quran burnings last year, they felt a sense of injustice about doing national service. “Why should I fight and do my part of civic duty if Sweden is unable to provide me with safety when it was calm and safe?”[/size]
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