Swedish authorities have rushed specially trained police officers from other parts of the country to the capital Stockholm, to tackle a series of riots that have plagued its suburbs since the past week. The move comes after a fifth night of civil disturbances in which youths burned cars, schools and damaged public property. At least 13 people have been detained in connection with the disturbances.

Officers said the violence overnight on Thursday had been less intense than previous nights and that the participants seemed less aggressive. The unrest began last Sunday after an incident in which armed police shot dead a 69-year-old man in the Stockholm suburb of Husby.

80 per cent of the residents of Husby are from an immigrant background. The initial protests soon spread to other predominantly immigrant suburbs of the capital. The contiued violence has once again brought into focus the twin issues of immigration and integration of people born outside Sweden, into Swedish society.

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