The intruders hung a sign outside the embassy that read 'we will kill ourselves if you try to come in' [Reuters]

Police have stormed the Libyan embassy in Stockholm and arrested seven men who had broken in and threatened to kill themselves or set fire to the building if their demands were not met.

The intruders hung a flag of the Libyan revolution on the embassy's door and threw pictures of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi out of its windows.

One poster hung outside of the embassy read: "We will kill ourselves if you try to come in."

None of the protesters demands were made clear.

Police said they suspected the demonstrators had carried flammable liquids in with them.

Police spokesman Ulf Goeranzon told the AFP news agency: "We tried to negotiate with these people, but came to realise that the negotiations would not succeed, and since there was a real danger that human lives could be lost and of serious material damage, we went in.

"We arrested seven people. They have been removed from the building and they are now being interrogated at a police station."

'Complete chaos'

About 15 police patrols, as well as a number of fire engines and ambulances, were dispatched to the scene.

Activist Helmi Alnadori, who witnessed the events unfold, described the scene as "complete chaos".

According to Swedish media reports, a small group of demonstrators gathered in front of the embassy and chanted "Libya" when police broke the siege.

Many were also waving the flag of the monarchy that ruled Libya before Gaddafi.

It was not clear if those arrested were Swedish nationals or residents.

Alnadori told the Reuters news agency that two of the intruders contacted him and said that they were all asylum seekers whose applications to remain in Sweden had been denied.

With the exception of a single guard, the Libyan embassy was vacant at the time of the break-in. No one was hurt in the police assault.