I apologize for the unrelated content (not related to the Ukraine war) on a weekday – I didn’t dare to post the post below that I’ve been working on for a week because they were my own (qualified) guesses, but now the text below from Blankspot came, so I feel like I can move on.
https://blankspot.se/uppgifter-ud-diplomat-och-kurdisk-aktivist-offrades-i-byte-for-medin/
There is a group in Sweden that always has big opinions on how inhumane the rest of us are – even though all we do is work, take care of our families, and not offend anyone. Collectively, we are all guilty, often through original sin, and the solution is usually seen as throwing money at it – and in between, these individuals, with their big opinions, have made a career out of criticizing others.
The best hypocrites are those who have fought so hard for the poor in society that they unexpectedly became rich in the process, and then engage in tax planning in their private companies to try to pay the lowest possible tax – which then doesn’t go to the needy in society they claim to fight for.
https://www.sverigesradio.se/artikel/6224493
ETC is one of those finger-pointing groups and they have also had one of the most unethical setups for media support (which is saying something), but now it is quite clear that they are aiming to become a voice in the ether, and we will hear much more from them in the future. Before their renewal, the concept was to tank subsidies, but now they are growing rapidly with +25,000 paying subscribers.
https://www.sverigesradio.se/artikel/6998675
The media had already linked the Kurdish representative who was arrested in Gävle with the Medin case, so I was not the first to make that connection – and it is a shining example of the aforementioned group not practicing what they preach. Stay tuned for a thorough critique of Tidölaget for those interested.
The government has denied (lied!) that there is a connection, but the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Kurdish groups are concerned about the government’s actions, suspecting that Turkey’s agenda has been carried out behind closed doors.
https://www.sverigesradio.se/artikel/efter-sapoinsats-i-gavle-koppling-till-medin-fallet-dementeras
Did you know that Medin was arrested in 2015 and that the Kurdish representative who was recently arrested in Gävle had information about his release back then? At that time, Syrian soldiers who had been captured by the Kurds were released so that Medin could go free.
https://www.journalisten.se/nyheter/frigivne-journalisten-joakim-medin-landar-i-sverige
The other diplomat from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs who was arrested also testified in favor of the arrested Kurdish representative in a trial in Sweden in 2023-2024.
Apparently, it was a money laundering trial, and he was acquitted. When was it in time, you might wonder 🧐 – wait, it’s coming below.
It is clear that the other arrested diplomat from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Kurdish representative in Gävle can be linked – and that there are previous connections to both Turkey and Medin.
By the way, Turkish media has now revealed the name of the Swedish diplomat who was arrested and has connections to the Kurdish representative in Gävle. Do you know the name of the person from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs who was arrested?
Why does Turkish media know this if you didn’t, if it has nothing to do with Turkey?
Johan Medin went to Turkey fully aware that he was a major critic of Erdogan and that journalists were being arrested. At the time, I scrolled through his blog, and he is a fierce critic of the dictatorship in Turkey – he is not wrong at all, and I am also a big supporter of the Kurds’ struggle for freedom.
Medin’s employer, ETC, had no security in place for him – he traveled without press credentials as a private individual and took the main entrance instead of sneaking in – the rest is history.
His wife was about to give birth, he is relatively young, and Turkish prison is a very unpleasant institution, but after 51 days, he was released. He seemed to have avoided the extra treatment that The Guardian describes below – which is very good.
Cases like these usually take their time, but the government acted decisively. Davit Isaak, Schibye (who started Blankspot), the NATO decision – all are examples of when it takes a long time, and I thought it would take at least a year.
At least Sweden’s ambassador to Turkey was surprised.
ETC, who caused all this through substandard risk management, has not praised the government at all.
Instead, they praise Jonas Sjöstedt, who is now a highly paid Member of the European Parliament after apparently getting tired of living in the ambassador’s residence in Vietnam – it was only of interest because ETC praised him and did not discuss his private life.
ETC also praises the lawyer who wrote a 200-page report that no one read.
I checked their website just to make sure they didn’t hide any tribute to the government that I could be thrown in the face.
Praise everyone except those who did the job.
Ulf Kristersson spoke with Erdogan, and so did our Minister for Foreign Affairs. Do you think Jonas Sjöstedt has spoken with Erdogan? Or the lawyers – do you think they have spoken with Erdogan?
https://omni.se/kristersson-har-talat-med-erdogan-inga-eftergifter/a/0VdQ90
It is not very common for our government to go all-in to save a private individual – after the 2004 Tsunami, the initial reaction was “they have to manage on their own,” for example. It was a streamlining of departures after that, and a well-deserved electoral defeat followed the crisis management, which was so bad that it actually went down in history books.
Others who are imprisoned abroad rarely have the sitting Prime Minister’s help – do you remember that family with children who were thrown into a metal shed in the Maldives during COVID – I actually followed them daily, and it ended happily, but it was apparently close to going wrong. Aftonbladet took full responsibility for them, and some journalists followed that family and helped as best they could – Kudos 🙏.
I wrote some praising emails to AB when it happened.
https://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/y323vg/radslan-gjorde-oss-starkare-som-familj
We all remember how Erdogan stood and laughed at the NATO membership, as soon as there was going to be a vote, someone in Sweden had written something derogatory about Turkey – and then a Quran was burned.
So… a few days before Medin was released, a prominent Kurdish opponent of Erdogan was arrested by SÄPO in Gävle, and the suspected crime is “serious unauthorized handling of secret information.”
The crime is as follows –
“that someone improperly acquires, promotes, provides, or discloses information about Sweden’s defense – about defense facilities, weapons, stores, imports, exports, manufacturing methods, etc. – or about any other matter of significance, if it harms Sweden’s security to reveal the matter to a foreign power.”
It is not espionage as the requirement is to intend to convey the information to a foreign power.
Säpo’s raid was prepared – a DHL courier with some telephone repairmen nearby. Since the Thyberg scandal exploded a few days earlier, it became a bit chaotic, but if you prepare a raid with a DHL courier and telephone repairmen, it presumably has a longer lead time than the Thyberg scandal, so there is no connection to that.
SÄPO was probably quite satisfied that this was initially linked to the Thyberg scandal.
It doesn’t take much imagination to understand how this happened or how…
Zoom out now and consider the overall criminal situation in Sweden, but SÄPO is putting all its effort into a Kurdish representative who, by the way, was also indicted and acquitted during the NATO discussions.
But now he will be dragged through the courts again – almost as if the legal system is being used as a tool to harass individuals, the 80s are knocking and want to join in.
What he may have revealed about our defense that is not widely known, I am very curious to find out. Have we been exporting to the wrong side in some conflict again, and it’s top-secret embarrassing – worth following up on that criminal accusation anyway.
But this is something the group with all its moralizing doesn’t want to discuss at all apparently – they don’t want to praise the government for acting decisively, and they don’t want to connect the Kurdish representative in Gävle with Medin’s release.
It’s a bit like choosing to push ahead in the lifeboat queue when the boat is sinking – Medin and ETC let another person take the fall so they could save their own skin.
I don’t know how I would choose if presented with this dilemma and the alternative was to share a cell with 14 people who did unspeakable things to me daily for a few years – so I leave it at that.
The government has been pragmatic – the man has surely committed crimes despite being acquitted last year.
Medin is surely relieved to avoid being disgraced daily and to see his family again.
The moralizing elite with all their moralizing turns a blind eye to this because it doesn’t fit into their usual narrative that they like to hammer us with.
I bet a month’s salary that Shiyar Ali will also be acquitted this time. Anyway, he doesn’t seem to be prone to escape because he was released on the same day despite the extremely serious crimes he committed.
How often does one get caught in a sting operation by SÄPO posing as telephone operators and DHL couriers – it must have been a very serious crime on the penalty scale because the police barely investigate rapes and murders anymore, “lack of leads”…
By the way, Shiyar Ali was already upset in 2022 that Sweden agreed with Turkey to extradite 33 people to Turkey so that we could finally start the journey towards NATO membership – sacrificing a few for the greater good of all.
What makes it all a bit more spicy is that Medin was helped by the same Kurdish representative back in 2015, and his career has been built on advocating for the Kurds, and ETC really stands up for the Kurds’ cause as well.
But when it comes to choosing between being subjected to extreme treatment in a Turkish prison for a few years or seeing the family again, then the choice apparently wasn’t that difficult – clash with reality.
Sacrificing a few so that many, preferably children, can survive is the constant dilemma. Unfortunately, it is never acceptable, and no one has the right to make such a decision about another person.
There is right and wrong, and sometimes it’s black and white – ETC, Medin, and our government have committed a great injustice that is also not morally compatible with how ETC and Medin perceive themselves and earn their living.
It is also criminal to use our legal system in this way, and those who made the necessary decisions should resign.
And the government has formally confirmed that there is no connection between Shiyar Ali and the Medin case.
I don’t see how they can sweep this under the top-secret archive, so the government has knowingly lied when they are not allowed to, which is also a reason for resignation.
Our government seems to have made a habit of harassing the Kurds to appease Turkey, so they are keeping up appearances, one could say.
I hope that ETC, Medin, and our government are thoroughly scrutinized for this, but it wouldn’t surprise me if ETC comes out in a week with a slightly polished version where our government is severely condemned in the Shiyar Ali case.
By the way, do you think the opposition will go after the Tidö law with a blowtorch for this or hush it up – they would have to sacrifice ETC and Medin in that case, right?
Shiyar Ali lives in a small house on the outskirts of Gävle, was a self-employed restaurateur, as well as being involved in trade unions, Kurdish affairs, and politics. Covid seems to have hit hard on his business(es), and the last time he was convicted, he resigned from his political position within the Center Party and the restaurant/restaurants seem to have gone bankrupt. The timeline is not entirely clear.
And now they are after him again – a 61-year-old who is already down.
I actually don’t know Shiyar Ali any closer than this, but even the quick-to-judge flashbacks seemed to think that the last time he was arrested, it was obviously a job ordered by Turkey as well.
Second time’s the charm – the real image of Sweden.
An open goal for the opposition, what are they waiting for 🧐
If I have had time to put this together – what is our established media except Blankspot doing 🧐
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You are forgiven 😎
Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea máxima culpa.
Now, everything you write is based on speculation and probabilities, but there is no actual evidence that Shiyar Ali was detained to secure Medin’s release.
The government has publicly stated that there was no form of exchange or concessions made to bring Medin home. If there had been, do you think they would dare to make such a statement?
The evidence in the trial was thin, consisting only of the articles and pictures that Medin himself and ETC had published. Medin has been smeared from the right and accused of various things (such as involvement in Quran burning, etc.). It is very possible that Turkey believed it and expected to find evidence. Once they imprison him, they realize that it will be difficult to convict him without facing massive criticism. This would also explain why things suddenly progressed quite quickly.
It can actually be that simple, and the simplest explanation is often the correct one.
But it’s fun with conspiracy theories, and if you can squeeze ETC, which leans left, then you can’t resist taking the chance.
Let’s assume that the government indeed wanted to bring Medin home and was willing to make an exchange. It’s not entirely unlikely and could be true. However, there are some arguments against it.
The NATO issue was being negotiated for a long time; don’t you think it would take months for Turkey to try to get the most out of this too?
This time, they were suddenly satisfied after just a few weeks. What did they get in return? That Shiyar Ali was detained? Do you also think he will be released because the accusations are unfounded? It’s hardly a propaganda victory for Turkey or that they have removed a major threat. I believe Turkey aimed much higher and tried to get the most out of this.
Shiyar Ali’s arrest may be because they have actually been keeping an eye on him for a long time, and last time they failed to convict him, but they were probably quite sure he was involved. I rather think it’s about the promise we made to Turkey in connection with the NATO application. If it were a matter of exchange, they would probably have just sent in regular police officers.
But OK, let’s assume that it is indeed the case that the government and Turkey agree that Shiyar Ali should be detained in exchange for Medin’s release. If that’s the case, the government deserves criticism if they are not open about it.
Then we come to your completely unfounded assumption that it happens with the approval or at the request of ETC and Medin? That they should be accused of double standards for the solution the government chose? Do you really think they had any say in it at all? The government denies that they exchanged for anything. Do you think they would then call ETC and suggest such a solution? ETC would immediately write an article about Sweden exposing him. Or do you think ETC called the government and asked them to detain Shiyar Ali?
The fact that they do not thank the government is of course either because the government was simply not involved, or because ETC is not at all pleased that Shiyar Ali was sacrificed.
Feel free to accuse ETC of being naive regarding the threat against Medin, but accusing them and Medin of sacrificing Shiyar Ali for their own gain lacks any sensible logic behind it.
If the government had admitted that it was an exchange, it could have been a different story, but since they deny it, any exchange must have taken place behind very closed doors.
Inclined to agree – and not.
-These ARE unconfirmed reports
-Would the ice cream vendor Erdogan settle for so little???? Srsly?
-When did the amateurs in the government become pragmatic and completely shameless at a pure and simple social democrat level?
It would indeed be a takeover in all respects except the ethical/moral one, but remember that they are only borrowing the country for a four-year period, they do not govern it (regardless of whether some of them may think so).
Bismarck’s words about sausage making and legislation come to mind.
Compare with the handling of the Flodérus scandal – Djalali was abandoned, and the most embarrassing all-heart-and-no-brains angle was taken on the release…
-It’s ELECTION YEAR soon and the media has long left the objective reality behind – 14K dead baby vultures, nuclear power is Nazism, V-party members attack EU parliamentarians and report the victim to the police… (Go home, oh present time, you’re drunk…) – but about this, it’s very quiet? When did the opposition become so worthless in its favorite sport, mudslinging?
I do believe ETC intentionally sacrificed Medin (he was probably worth more to them as a sacrifice than well-being in Sweden; if he himself was aware… Well…) And at least I don’t support ETC because they are left-wing. I belong to no “team”. Sometimes they hit the mark. It’s their shameless financing setup that I hate (as much as the system that allows itself to be exploited), yet another Möller-esque “theft from the people”.
I remember you had a long post where you thought it was the Social Democrats?
Then you probably read…. Sloppily.
It wasn’t about Medin/Ali.
It was about Thyberg-gate – yes, I argued that Sveavägen 68 absolutely CANNOT be removed from the list; it would be a DERELICTION OF DUTY to sit on that information as the opposition and then not use it against the sitting government, regardless of who is sacrificed/favored in the process.
They have my reluctant respect for how good they are at such things (while the bourgeois are amateurs… in that area too).
Do you think you will devour this analysis 😎
Ok – message received, sacrifice Siyar Ali to save ETC.
If you have followed this, ETC and the opposition have been pressuring the government to free Medin.
Have you ever in your life heard of Turkey giving away anything for free?
The left consists of various groups that advocate for their cause, there are the old orthodox communists who praise Marx, as well as many who support different groups fighting for influence in their country or to acquire a country. They are often united in their hatred towards the Western world, especially the USA.
Support for the left, both economically and popularly, is quite stable, so if one group receives more support, another must retreat.
Sometimes there is a balance between these groups, but sometimes something happens in the world that shifts the focus more towards one group.
We probably cannot completely ignore the tensions within the leftist movement where the Palestinians have gained increasing influence at the expense of other groups. Medin, who seems to belong to the Kurdish faction within the left, may have taken one for the team and traveled to Turkey fully aware that he would likely be arrested, but that they would hardly be able to keep him locked up for long. Medin received support from Jonas Sjöstedt, who seems to belong more to the same faction as Medin rather than the racist Hamas-embracing part.
ETC simply praised their teammate Sjöstedt because it benefits them. Everything to the right of Sjöstedt they consider opponents who absolutely should not receive any form of recognition, regardless of what they do. Clear as day for most, except possibly for Kristersson who sometimes dreams of some form of recognition from the left and of becoming some kind of “Father of the Nation.”
Certainly no coincidence that the Kurdish sympathizer in Gävle was arrested. The Turkish security service has surely been monitoring him closely, much more closely than the Swedish Security Service which does not have the resources to track every activist.
Is it in any way wrong if the police use information from a foreign power? We have free evidence in our laws and that is what our authorities have to follow, even if it happens to be a leftist activist who ends up in their clutches.
Since MXT is whining above for daring to criticize ETC and running the old classic BEVIS.
So it’s fun to be able to post that at least the parliament has read the post and taken action.
https://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/a/QMzqgq/regeringen-och-sapo-kallas-till-riksdagen-kravs-pa-svar-om-medin
Yes, as I write, it may be that the government has made a trade, but that doesn’t mean that ETC is behind it.
Here it is Schibye and a Turkey expert who believes it is connected
https://www.sverigesradio.se/artikel/varfor-slapptes-medin-nu
And here Swedish Radio considers direct information to them safe to release
https://www.sverigesradio.se/artikel/sapotillslag-mot-diplomat-uppges-kopplat-till-joakim-medin
Sure, here is the translation of the text from Swedish to English:
Of course, the young “proletarian” Schibye shows up as the “jack-in-the-box”
The group of friends Schibye, Medin, and Ehrenberg know how to milk the most out of their story to get attention. No coincidence that they are involved.
Of course, the young “proletarian” Schibye shows up as the “jack-in-the-box”
Could it be as simple as SÄPO acting on the Turkish investigation?
“Today’s ETC can reveal that behind the summary indictment lies an extensive, classified investigation claiming that there is a “terror cell” in Sweden allegedly consisting of Joakim and a number of Swedish and Swedish-Kurdish activists and debaters. They are said to be acting together with the PKK. And according to the Turkish security service, they are said to be acting through Dagens ETC”.
https://www.etc.se/ledare/turkiet-hoejer-insatsen-gaar-till-attack-mot-hela-dagens-etc
Now all involved in this have been issued with a gag order, including the lawyers.