One dead, three injured in Sweden high school sword attack

• An 18-year-old former student attacked Brinell high school in Fagersta, Sweden, with a sword, killing one and injuring three before police shot and detained him.
• The attacker wore a helmet, had a previous assault conviction, and targeted students on the school's first day after summer break.
• This incident follows several past violent attacks at Swedish schools, including deadly stabbings and shootings in recent years.

FAGERSTA, Sweden – An 18-year-old man armed with a sword attacked students at a Swedish high school on Aug 21, killing one person and injuring three, before being shot and detained by police.

Media reported the attacker was a former student at the school.

The incident occurred on the afternoon of Aug 21 at Brinell high school, in the central Swedish town of Fagersta, which has about 13,000 residents.

The school had just reopened after summer recess, and for some students, it was their first day.

“We received an alarm at 1406 (8.06pm in Singapore) about suspected deadly violence and sent all available resources to the school,” a police spokesperson told Reuters.

Police told a press conference that the suspect was an 18-year-old man whom they shot and took into custody.

Public broadcaster SVT, citing unnamed sources, reported that the attacker was a former student at the school who wielded a sword and wore a helmet.

The person had a previous conviction for assault, SVT said.

The local health authority said two victims were teenage boys who were severely injured.

A third injured person was released from hospital.

Sweden has seen some high-profile attacks at educational institutions.

In February 2025, a 35-year-old man killed 10 people at an adult education centre in Orebro, Sweden’s worst mass shooting. Police said it was motivated by the killer’s wish to end his life because of financial and psychological woes.

In March 2022, an 18-year-old student fatally stabbed two teachers at a secondary school in the southern city of Malmo.

And in October 2015, three people were killed in a racially motivated attack at a school in the western town of Trollhattan by a sword-wielding assailant who was killed by police. REUTERS, AFP