One dead, multiple wounded in sword attack at Swedish school

A person armed with a sword has wounded multiple people at a school in Fagersta in central Sweden, authorities said Friday.

Police said one person had been taken into custody and there was no longer any danger to the public.

After initially saying three people had been wounded in the attack, two of them severely, police later said an additional person had been killed.

Earlier on Friday, Sweden's healthcare authority said two boys, both aged between 12 and 17, were being treated in hospital.

Police said the suspect was an 18-year-old man, whom they shot during a confrontation and took into custody.

What else do we know?

Police were called to the Brinellskola, a secondary school in Fagersta, at around 2 p.m. local time (1200 GMT). The school, which has some 450 students aged 16 to 20, had just reopened after the summer holidays.

Public broadcaster SVT reported that ambulances, police cars and a police helicopter were outside the property.

The municipality said other schools and some public buildings in the area had been locked down.

Fagersta, home to some 12,000 people, lies around 170 kilometers (105 miles) northwest of the capital, Stockholm.

Reactions to 'terrible news'

"Our thoughts are with all those affected," Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said in a post on X. "We do not yet know what lies behind the act, but we know that the police are working very intensively."

Magdalena Andersson, leader of the opposition Social Democrats, lamented the "terrible news."

"When violence takes place at a school, I know it impacts everyone in our country. All of Sweden stands together with Fagersta at this difficult time," she wrote on X.

Other attacks at educational institutions

Sweden has seen a number of high-profile attacks at educational facilities in recent years.

In February 2025, a 35-year-old man killed 10 people at an adult education center in Orebro.

In another incident, an 18-year-old student fatally stabbed two teachers at a Malmo high school in March 2022.