A Swedish prosecutor has accused a man detained over the weekend of spying on exiled members of China's minority Uyghur community for Beijing. The suspect, born on April 8, 1967, was taken into custody on Sunday and required a Mandarin interpreter during proceedings.
Prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist stated that the individual is suspected of having illegally gathered information and intelligence on people from the Uyghur community for Chinese intelligence services.
The case is considered highly sensitive and is in its preliminary stages, limiting the information that can be disclosed at this time. The suspect faces allegations of conducting espionage against refugees and engaging in unauthorized intelligence-gathering activities concerning individuals.
Sweden's SAPO intelligence agency noted that such offenses typically involve operations targeting political opponents or minority groups, often carried out by authoritarian or non-democratic states.
READ ALSO: Trump Authorizes 90-Day Pause on Most Tariffs, Escalates Levies on China
The Uyghurs, predominantly Sunni Muslims, are the main ethnic group in China's northwest Xinjiang province.
Beijing has been accused of detaining over a million Uyghurs and other Muslims as part of a campaign that the UN has said could constitute "crimes against humanity." China denies these allegations, claiming its actions are aimed at eradicating extremism in Xinjiang and promoting economic development.
The detention and accusation highlight the ongoing tensions between China and Western countries over human rights issues, particularly concerning the Uyghur community. The case also underscores the global nature of espionage activities and the challenges faced by countries in protecting exiled communities from foreign intelligence operations.
