Nordic Resistance Movement


The Nordic Resistance Movement is a Pan-Nordic neo-Nazi movement and in Sweden, a political party. It is established in Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark, and also has members in Iceland. It has been banned in Finland, but the ban has been appealed. The NRM has been described as a terrorist organization due to their aim of abolishing democracy along with their paramilitary activities and weapons caches.

Formation and structure

In December 1997, Klas Lund and some other former members of the White Aryan Resistance - a militant neo-Nazi network active from 1991 to 1993 - having been released from prison after being convicted of robberies and manslaughter, among other things, formed the Swedish Resistance Movement together with individuals working with the neo-Nazi magazine Folktribunen and members of Nationell Ungdom, a neofascist and openly racist organisation.
In 2016, the Nordic Resistance Movement was formed, with separate affiliates in Sweden, Finland, and Norway; a Danish affiliate was later disbanded. The Nordic Resistance Movement advocates an immediate stop to what they call mass immigration to the Scandinavian countries, and repatriation of people that are not of Northern European or of closely related descent. It also advocates Nordic self-sufficiency and withdrawal from the European Union.
On 28 February 2018, The Verge reported that Discord had shut down a number of neo-Nazi and alt-right servers, including that of the Nordic Resistance Movement, from their private chat platform, for abuse of their Terms of Service.

Sweden

The Swedish Resistance Movement was founded by Klas Lund. In 2020 its leader was Simon Lindberg, and its political wing was managed by. It is known for its opposition to non-white immigration to Sweden. The SMR is considered a central actor in Sweden's white power movement. The aim of Nordic Resistance Movement is to establish an Authoritarian direct democratic neo-Nazi government by revolution or elections.
The organization says its fight will require bloodshed.
The SMR has praised Adolf Hitler and Corneliu Codreanu in their publications. Their main tactics are distributing leaflets and making public speeches in inner-city areas in support of neo-Nazism, denouncing immigration. They also publish the Nationellt Motstånd magazine.
In November 2003 the Swedish Security Service raided homes of leading members, among them Lund, who was later sentenced to prison for illegal possession of firearms.
In May 2006, the Swedish Resistance Movement announced that the National Youth organisation and all its activities and members had been merged with the SRM.
In December 2013, armed NRM members attacked an anti-racist demonstration in Stockholm which resulted in riots and clashes. Many were arrested afterwards.
In the 2014 Swedish election, two members of the NRM were elected to Sweden Democrats seats in the municipal councils in Ludvika and Borlänge. In what has been described as a "coup" their names were added to Sweden Democrats' ballots that were open for additions.
Late in 2015, the NRM was registered as a political party in Sweden, headed by the organization's spokesman, Pär Öberg.
Three men with ties to Swedish NRM were sentenced to prison for respectively eight and a half years, five years, and one and a half years on 7 July 2017 for three bombings in Göteborg which took place in November 2016 and January 2017. One person received life-threatening injuries at the bombing of a refugee centre in Västra Frölunda. The men have appealed the verdict.
On 30 September 2017, NRM staged a march with roughly 500 members taking part in Sweden's second largest city Göteborg, timed to coincide with the annual Göteborg Book Fair. Fighting broke out between NRM and counterdemonstrators. Twenty-two NRM members including the organisation's leader Simon Lindberg were arrested on suspicion of violent public disorder, and one counter-demonstrator was arrested on suspicion of attacking a police officer. Swedish Jews were outraged at the demonstration, which took place on the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur and was originally planned to pass near a synagogue. The march was re-routed and shortened following a court ruling.
On 19 April 2018, fireworks were thrown at the U.S. embassy in Stockholm during a protest against the bombing of Syria. One NRM man was arrested.
On 6 July 2018, members of the NRM assaulted two pro-Israel activists in Gotland.

Electoral results

Finland

Suomen Vastarintaliike is the Finnish branch of the Nordic Resistance Movement. It was founded by Esa Henrik Holappa, who would later abandon neo-Nazism and leave the group. Its current leader is Antti Niemi. One of the main tactics has been the planting of propaganda stickers and posters. The members also participate in combat training arranged by the organization. The organisation is also increasingly violent, among other actions attacking anti-racism and gay pride demonstrations.
On 30 November 2017, the Pirkanmaa District Court banned the Nordic Resistance Movement in Finland. The organisation was banned as it 'flagrantly violated the principles of good practice', according to the court.
The ban has been appealed and is not legally binding. A request by the police for a temporary ban was turned down. In September, 2018 the Court of appeal in Turku upheld the ban. In March, 2019, the Supreme Court placed a temporary ban on the group. This ban is binding.
The National Bureau of Investigation suspects the Nordic Resistance Movement to be continuing its operations under the names Kohti Vapautta! and Suomalaisapu.

Norway

Norske Motstandsbevegelsen is the Norwegian chapter of the Nordic Resistance Movement, founded and chaired by Haakon Forwald. They are organized in four subchapters in Norway.

Iceland

There have been a few newspaper articles on ties of the movement to Iceland, and it has a website under Icelandic domain.
In September 2019 between 10 and 15 Swedish members of the Nordic Resistance Movement staged an event at Lækjartorg in Reykjavík where they spread flyers and promoted the organisation. The event sparked an anti-nazi demonstration a few days later which drew an estimated crowd of 200 participants.