[3] The size of this group has doubled in the period of 2002 to 2009; the influx of Iraqi refugees increased dramatically from 2006 to 2009 as a result of the US-led invasion of Iraq.
The largest numbers, almost 30,000 people, of Iraqis in Sweden today have migrated as a consequence of the Iraq War of 2003 to 2010; most are Sunni Arabs and Assyrian Christians.
[1] The Swedish Migration Board decided in early 2006 that all Iraqi asylum-seekers from Central and Southern Iraq whose claims had been rejected as part of the normal status determination process would nevertheless receive a permanent residence permit, allowing the majority of Iraqis in Sweden to begin the process of fully[citation needed] integrating into Swedish society with a secure legal status.
Most of these persons have joined the existing Iraqi community in Sweden in municipalities such as Malmö and Södertälje, with the scale of the influx to these areas forcing newcomers to live in very poor conditions.
Speaking in June 2007, Södertälje's mayor Anders Lago described the situation as being close to breaking point, with the authorities barely able to provide basic services and many newcomers sharing apartments with up to fifteen people.