Iran sanctuary for Foxtrot crime boss angers critics of 'silent Sweden'

Sweden must abandon its policy of "silent diplomacy" towards Iran as it faces a wave of gangland warfare orchestrated by a fugitive mobster.

A leading politician told The National that Stockholm should publicly call for Iran to hand over gangster Rawa Majid, who is hiding there to avoid facing justice for a string of offences.

Alireza Akhondi, who was born in Iran and is a prominent critic of the regime, told The National he knows Majid is on Tehran-controlled territory.

The 39-year-old self-styled 'Kurdish Fox' established the drug-dealing Foxtrot criminal network, which has brought unprecedented violence to the once peaceful Scandinavian nation that now has one of the highest murder rates in Europe.

Majid’s feud with Ismail Abdo, a one-time close associate nicknamed 'Strawberry', who runs the rival Rumba network, led to a series of tit-for-tat killings.

Swedish police said this week that a seizure of cocaine in the south-west of the country, weighing at least 200 kilograms, was linked to the Foxtrot network and a suspect was arrested. It is one of a series of busts the authorities have made in recent years.

The Foxtrot boss has also been accused of carrying out attacks on Israeli targets on behalf of Iran, for which he has been placed under sanctions by the US. Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security are believed to have recruited the gangster in return for sheltering him.

Rawa Majid with members of his network

Mr Akhondi, a member of the Centre Party, said the Swedish government should publicly call for the gangster to be handed over so he can face trial, rather than negotiate in private.

He said: “I think it's the only way forward. I always believe that it's important to have a clear voice and the Swedish silent diplomacy, as they call this method, I don't think that works."

Mr Akhondi said being publicly accu