European dignitaries honour Lindh at memorial service
Europe’s top politicians joined Swedish dignitaries in Stockholm today to pay tribute to murdered foreign minister Anna Lindh.
Ms. Lindh, one of the country’s leading figures and a 46-year-old mother of two, was fatally stabbed last Wednesday while shopping in a department store in the capital.
A 35-year-old man was arrested in connection with her death this week and continues to be held in custody.
Sweden’s king and queen attended the service at City Hall, along with members of the ruling social democrat party. The Greek, French, and German foreign ministers also attended, as did Foreign Secretary Jack Straw.
Over 1,000 people attended the service, which comes ahead of a private funeral for Ms. Lindh this Saturday.
The murder is expected to prompt a review of security in Sweden, where even high-profile politicians are not normally attended by bodyguards.
And Ms. Lindh’s death is not the first incident of its kind: back in 1986 the country was sent into shock when the then prime minister Olof Palme was assassinated. To date no one has been convicted of his murder.
