Ilmar Reepalu (born 11 October 1943) is a Swedish Social Democrat politician of Estonian origin who was the 17th chairman of the municipal board in Malmö from 1994 to 2013.

[1] He also was criticized strongly during his term, both for a surge in crime in the city,[2] and reportedly antisemitism for comments he made in which he associated attacks on Jews in Malmö with their alleged support for Israel.

[citation needed] During Reepalu's mayoralty, Malmö intensified its reputation as a haven for the smuggling of drugs and illegal weapons, and for other criminal activity, a trend that had begun in the 1970s and '80s.

[2] In 2011 and 2012, Malmö experienced eight execution-style killings, all of which remain unsolved, along with a bombing of its police headquarters, which led local newspapers to dub the city "Sweden's Chicago".

[2] In February 2013, Reepalu announced that he would step down as mayor on 1 July in order to give his successor time to establish themself before the next election.

[5][6][7] Swedish newspapers and political leaders as well as Israeli media criticised Ilmar Reepalu for denying the rise of antisemitism in Malmö.

[16] In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph in February 2010, Reepalu was again asked about reports that antisemitism in Malmö has increased to the point that some of its Jewish residents are (or are considering) moving to Israel.

[8][18] In March 2012, Reepalu again came under criticism when he told the magazine Neo that members of the Sweden Democrats had "infiltrated" the city's Jewish community in order to turn it against Muslims.

Later, Reepalu said in the interview, he heard rumors that Kent Ekeroth in fact was the fraternal nephew of a leading figure in Malmö's Jewish community.

Lena Posner-Körösi of the Council of Swedish Jewish Communities subsequently sent a letter to Social Democratic leader Stefan Lofven, stating that "Regardless of what he says and does from now on, we don't trust him."

Looking further into the matter Skånska Dagbladet noted that it was Ted Ekeroth, also a member of the Sweden Democrats and the twin brother of Kent, that had attended the screening and debate.