Södertälje, Sweden (AINA) -- The local newspaper of Södertälje, a town just south of the Swedish capital, has been busy covering the unfolding drama of the Seyfo Monument. Seyfo is an Assyrian word referring to the 1914-1918 Turkish genocide of 750,000 Assyrians, as well as 1 million Greeks and 1.5 million Armenians. The Turkish state fiercely objects to any mentioning of genocide of Assyrians and is spending millions of dollars to promote its official view of Turkish WWI history.

The town of Södertälje has reluctantly become a battle ground for the efforts of the Turkish state and the 20,000 strong Assyrians living there since the mid 70s. The Assyrian community was promised recently by the municipality of Södertälje a monument for the remembrance of the Turkish genocide of Assyrians. But the issue took a new spin as fresh reports revealed Turkish lobbyists influenced Swedish politicians to stop the planned monument. A shadowy organization named "The ideas of Ataturk in Sweden" is suspected to be behind the lobby efforts to stop the monument.

Prominent members of the Assyrian community have been quoted in the media vowing to continue their efforts until the monument is installed, calling the Turkish state to change its position and acknowledge the genocide of Assyrians. "This is a sensitive issue for every Assyrian in the world and it is of great importance for several generations of Assyrians, that is why we will not give up so easily," said Rachel Hadodo, chairwoman of the Assyrian Federation of Sweden.