Prosecutor to probe US surveillance in Sweden

Prosecutor Tomas Lindstrand said he will determine if intelligence laws were violated by the actions — including what officials described as photographing and gathering information about individuals in Sweden.

Swedish officials have said they knew the U.S. Embassy applied security measures around the embassy, but didn't know that Swedish citizens were being monitored. Justice Minister Beatrice Ask alleged Saturday that people linked to the embassy had performed the surveillance since 2000, without fully informing Swedish authorities.

The American Embassy has denied the activities were secret and said they were part of normal security precautions.

The announcement came after Norway last week asked the United States to clarify surveillance activities there following a TV report suggesting it had systematically monitored Norwegian residents during the past 10 years. Officials in Oslo said they were unaware of such actions.

Lindstrand said the activities in Sweden could be illegal if they involved systematic collection of information about individuals and were kept secret. But, he added, most foreign surveillance programs in the country are legal.