We can kind of see the misunderstanding here.
A mysterious group of bearded men who met on the internet, arrange to congregate at a deserted old castle wearing dark clothing and waving a big black flag with a white swords on it.
Locals in Sweden were so perturbed by the gang of hirsute men travelling to the picturesque locality of Gränna for a meet-up, that they informed the country’s counter-terrorism unit.
Yet when the police arrived to confront the group, they encountered a gang of hairy hipsters, rather than a cell of furry fundamentalists.
It was in fact the Swedish chapter of the ‘Bearded Villains’, a organisation that celebrates manly face fuzz.
Swedish police raid suspected ISIS meeting, discover it is actually the local beard club. pic.twitter.com/XwXEcUPNi7
— ian bremmer (@ianbremmer) October 12, 2015
They were meeting for a photo shoot at the local castle ruins. As organiser Andreas Fransson explained to the Independent:
“After about an hour the police showed up. They told us they got a call from someone driving past on the highway, saying that there were ISIS terrorists at the ruins.
“The police saw of course that we weren’t terrorists, just very happy and nice bearded gentlemen. We had a laugh with the police and they left. It was a surreal experience.”
So let that be a lesson – don’t judge a book by its cover. Or a man by his beard.
~30 suspected ISIL reported in Brahehus, Sweden. Police finds… "Bearded Villains" beard club doing photo shoot. -DN pic.twitter.com/2PSHUqWkl4
— b9AcE 🐊 (moved → https://todon.eu/@b9AcE) (@b9AcE) October 12, 2015
