Hundreds of citizens from Nordic countries are registered as serving in the Israeli military, according to Israeli army data, fuelling debate in Europe over the legal responsibility of nationals who fight in foreign conflicts.
Swedish broadcaster SVT reported this month that 346 people with Swedish, Danish, Norwegian or Finnish citizenship were registered in the Israeli army.
They included 150 Swedish citizens, 99 Danes, 62 Finns and 35 Norwegians.
SVT also interviewed a dual-national soldier, identified only as "David", who said he had taken part in fighting in Gaza.
The figures have renewed questions over whether European authorities should investigate citizens who serve in the Israeli military where there is specific evidence linking them to alleged violations of international law.
The issue extends far beyond the Nordic countries.
Israeli military data reported earlier this year indicates that tens of thousands of personnel hold at least one additional foreign nationality.
One dataset obtained through a freedom of information request showed 47,107 Israeli military personnel holding additional citizenships as of March 2025.
A separate count reported by Yedioth Ahronoth put the number at 50,632.
The figures included more than 12,000 US citizens, more than 6,000 French nationals, more than 3,000 each from Germany and Ukraine and more than 2,000 British nationals.
The data does not show how many served in Gaza, whether they were active soldiers or reservists, or whether they served in combat units.
That distinction is important because holding foreign nationality or serving in the Israeli military does not in itself establish involvement in a crime.
But legal complaints targeting particular soldiers have increasingly been filed in European and other jurisdictions over alleged conduct during the Gaza war.
Israel has longstanding programmes allowing people from abroad to join its military.
The Mahal programme allows eligible Jewish volunteers who are not Israeli citizens to carry out military service without permanently immigrating to Israel.
More than 500 people are currently serving through the programme, according to figures cited in the original report, with more than 400 joining annually.
Other programmes, such as Sar-El, have traditionally focused on civilian and logistical volunteering rather than enlistment in combat units.
The participation of foreign nationals has attracted greater scrutiny since the start of the Gaza war. The New Arab has previously documented the network of "lone soldier" programmes recruiting people from abroad to serve in the Israeli military.
John Graversgaard, a Danish researcher and writer, told The New Arab that authorities should apply the same standard to citizens serving in foreign militaries regardless of which country they fight for.
He said the relevant issue was whether an individual had participated in conduct that could violate international law.
Walid Daher of the Palestinian Forum in Denmark said responsibility should similarly be based on each individual's actions and role.
More than 50,000 with additional nationalities
Israeli military data obtained by investigative website Declassified UK through a freedom of information request showed that 43,194 members of the military held Israeli citizenship and one other nationality.
Another 3,913 had multiple citizenships, producing a total of 47,107 in the dataset.
Separately, Yedioth Ahronoth reported that an Israeli military database listed 50,632 personnel with at least one additional foreign citizenship.
The army said some people appeared in more than one category, accounting for differences between the figures.
Neither dataset distinguishes between active service and reserves or between combat and non-combat roles.
Among those listed were 12,135 US nationals, 6,127 French nationals and more than 3,000 people holding either German or Ukrainian citizenship.
More than 2,000 held British citizenship.
The numbers have increased pressure on European governments to clarify how they deal with nationals serving in foreign armed forces.
Legal cases move into European courts
Several countries have already seen criminal complaints involving individuals who served in the Israeli military.
Swedish police had received more than 700 reports relating to possible war crimes in Gaza by August 2025, according to the report.
Prosecutors said several investigations had been opened, although they did not say whether Swedish nationals serving in the Israeli army were suspects.
In France, rights groups filed a complaint in July 2025 against two French-Israeli soldiers over alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
A similar complaint was filed in Germany in September 2025 against a soldier with links to Munich.
The allegations remain subject to investigation and have not resulted in final convictions.
In Britain, lawyers referred 10 British nationals who had served in the Israeli military to the Metropolitan Police in 2025, alleging involvement in war crimes.
The Metropolitan Police later reopened its investigation into several identifiable British nationals.
Other Israeli soldiers have faced complaints or investigations while travelling abroad. In 2025, Belgian police detained and questioned two Israeli soldiers following allegations relating to Gaza.
More recently, the Hind Rajab Foundation filed a criminal complaint in Portugal against an Israeli soldier, alleging war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
Danish human rights lawyer Helia Ratz told The New Arab that European states should apply the same standards to all citizens who fight abroad.
He argued there was greater scrutiny of Europeans who had joined armed groups in Syria than of those who served in the Israeli military.
Individual responsibility
Legal experts and activists interviewed for the report stressed that foreign citizenship or military service alone does not establish criminal responsibility.
The central question is whether evidence links an individual to a specific act that could constitute a war crime or another international offence.
The figures therefore cannot show how many foreign nationals took part in combat in Gaza or whether any particular soldier committed an offence.
But the growing number of investigations has shifted the debate.
What was once largely discussed as a question of volunteering in a foreign military is increasingly becoming a question of individual accountability and whether European governments will investigate their own nationals when credible evidence of alleged international crimes is presented.