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2011 Norway attacks

two sequential lone wolf terrorist attacks in Norway on 22 July 2011

The 2011 Norway attacks were two attacks in Norway on 22 July 2011. The first attack was a car bombing near government buildings in Oslo. The second attack was a mass shooting at a summer youth camp on an island northwest of Oslo. Of the total 77 deaths, 55 were teenagers, and another 96 people were injured.[2] The car bomb also shattered many windows of buildings in the government quarter of downtown Oslo.

2011 Norway attacks
Date22 July 2011 (2011-07-22)
15:26[1] (CEST)
Attack type
Car bombing and mass shooting
Deaths8 (Oslo)
69 (Utøya) Total: 77
Injured
30 (Oslo)
66 (Utøya) Total: 96
PerpetratorAnders Behring Breivik

The bomb explosion was near the office of Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg at 15:26.[3] It killed eight people and injured several others. The second attack happened about 90 minutes later, at a youth camp organized by the youth group (AUF) of the Norwegian Labour Party (AP) at the island of Utøya in Tyrifjorden, Buskerud. A gunman disguised as a policeman opened fire at the campers, killing 69 people.[2]

The police arrested several suspects, but most were released. Anders Behring Breivik, a 32-year-old Norwegian Protestant man, committed both attacks.[4] He was later charged with both attacks.[5] Records show he had planned the attacks for years, as an act of anti-immigration ideology and against multiculturalism.

The European Union, NATO and countries around the world have expressed their support for Norway and condemned the attacks.

Oslo bombing

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Map of the area of the explosion. Red building: Government building. Orange area: Position of a destroyed car. Blue building: Oil Ministry building.

On 22 July 2011 at 15:26 (CEST) a powerful explosion went off near the offices of the Prime Minister of Norway (H-blokka) and several other government buildings, such as the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (R4) and Ministry of Finance.[1][6] (See map)

The nearby street was filled with glass and debris following the explosion. The wreckage of a car was sighted near one of the affected buildings. A giant cloud of white smoke was seen as a fire burned at the Ministry of Petroleum. The blast was heard at least seven kilometres away.[6]

Following the explosion, police cleared the area and searched for more explosive devices.[7] The police asked people to leave central Oslo.[8]

Casualties

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Office of the Norwegian Prime Minister with blown-out windows shortly after the explosion.

Eight people are known to have been killed in the explosion,[9] with fifteen injured,[10][11] eleven seriously.[12] A doctor at the Oslo University Hospital said the hospital staff were treating head, chest and abdominal injuries.[13]

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg was not hurt in the blast.[9] Norway’s finance minister, Sigbjørn Johnsen, was on holiday in Denmark at the time.[14]

Because July is the main holiday time in Norway, and that attacks took place during the weekend, there were not as many people in the area as usual,[15] which may saved many lives.

Impact on transportation

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The Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy shortly after the expolsion

All roads into Oslo's downtown area were closed as police moved people from the area and warned Oslo residents to stay away from the city center. They were also told to limit their usage of mobile phones due to concerns of another possible terrorist attack.[16] Public transport into and out of the city was stopped.[17] The police checked cars on the road to Oslo airport,[18] which remained open as the police conducted searches in cars at the site.[19][20]

The Gardermoen railway line between Lillestrøm and Oslo airport was shut down after a suspicious package was found close to the tracks.[21] The same happened at the offices of TV 2, which were evacuated after a suspicious package was found outside the building.[22]

Utøya shooting

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About 90 minutes after the Oslo explosion,[9] a gunman in police uniform, believed to be Anders Behring Breivik,[23] got on a ferry about 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of Oslo. The ferry went to the island of Utøya in lake Tyrifjorden.[24] The island was the site of[9] the Labour Party's annual Workers' Youth League (AUF) youth summer camp. Once on the island, the gunman began to shoot the mainly adolescent campers, before finally being captured.[25]

The shooter was dressed as a police officer, and said he had come over for a routine check following the bombing event in Oslo. He signalled and asked people to gather around him[26] before firing his weapons,[27][28] killing and injuring many people. He first shot people on the island and later started shooting at people who were trying to escape by swimming across the lake.[29] The police reported that most of the casualties were youths of about 15 and 16 years old.[30] People on the island were reported to have hidden in lavatories or undergrowth, communicating by text message to avoid giving their positions away to the gunman.[31]

The shooting supposedly lasted for 90 minutes.[32] The police were informed about the shooting at 17:27, and at 18:27 the gunman had been arrested.[33] When the police arrived at the scene, they were confronted with a scene of survivors begging the officers to throw away their weapons. They were afraid that the men in uniforms would again open fire on them.[34]

At about 03:50 (CEST) on 23 July 2011, the National Police Commissioner Øystein Mæland thought the number of deaths at Utøya was "at least 80" with the count expected to increase.[35] Sixty-nine people died.[2]

Perpetrator

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The attacker is Anders Behring Breivik. He was arrested on Utøya for the shootings and also linked to the Oslo bombings.[36] He has been charged[5] and convicted of carrying out both attacks. He is in prison.

Political views

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Acting national police chief Sveinung Sponheim said that the suspected gunman's Internet postings "suggest that he has some political traits directed toward the right, and anti-Muslim views, but whether that was a motivation for the actual act remains to be seen".[37][38] Police have described Breivik as being a right-wing extremist.[39] Breivik described himself as a conservative nationalist. He has been described as a Christian fundamentalist by news sources.[5][40] He is reported to have written many posts on the website "document.no",[38] described by Aftenposten as "Islam-critical and Israel-friendly".[41] He went to meetings of "Documents venner" (Friends of Document), linked with the website.[42] He is was also once a member of the right-wing Progress Party (FrP) and its youth wing FpU. FpU leader Ove Vanebo said Breivik was active early in the 2000s, but he left the party as his viewpoints became more extreme.[43]

Media reports say that Breivik posted comments on the internet saying he is an admirer of Winston Churchill and Max Manus,[44][45] and also of Dutch politician Geert Wilders. Breivik said Wilders' Party for Freedom, is "the only true party for conservatives".[46] Breivik has said he is "pro-gay and pro-Israel".[47] On Twitter he paraphrased utilitarian philosopher John Stuart Mill: "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100,000 who have only interests."[48] The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) said that Breivik published a 1516-page manifesto, on his anti-multiculturalist and right-wing militant ideologies, on the day of the attacks.[49]

Beliefs that there were other perpetrator(s)

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Several witnesses at the youth camp, believe (as of 23 July 2011) that there was more than one shooter. The police have received descriptions of a second gunman, and are currently checking this information. Due to the uncertainty surrounding these witness descriptions and the chaotic nature of the events the police have, as a matter of precaution, yet to make an official comment on the matter.[50][51] Acting Police Chief Sveinung Sponheim has said that "It's very difficult at this point to say whether he was acting alone or whether he was acting as part of a larger network". [52]

Reactions

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Flowers laid in front of Oslo Cathedral the day after the attacks

Domestic

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At a press conference on the morning after the attacks, prime minister Jens Stoltenberg called the attack a "national tragedy" and the worst atrocity since World War II.[53] Stoltenberg said that the attack would not hurt the Norwegian democracy, and said the proper answer to the violence was "more democracy, more openness, but not naivety".[54]

Eskil Pedersen of the Workers' Youth League vowed to "return to Utøya" and urged Norway to continue its tradition of openness and tolerance.[55]

King Harald sent his condolences to the victims and their families, and urged unity.[56]

Svein Østerud (no:), professor emeritus, said that before we can analyze the trauma of the nation, we have to acknowledge that Breivik and [some] other terrorists, are youths that lost their way, when going thru institutions ... while struggling to find one's identity, and at the same time (and everyday) being forced to [ conform to the] norms set by school, parents, and social media.[57]

International

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The European Union, NATO, the United Nations Security Council, governments and leaders from around the world expressed their condemnation of the attack, condolences, and solidarity with Norway.[58]

Memorials

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At Utøya, the place of memorial is called ["the clearing"] "Lysninga";[59] a part of it is ["the ring"] "Ringen" - a "ring of steel [that] hangs between trees and here the names and age[60] of the majority of those 69 killed are engraved"; "it lies at the highest point of the island";[61] It was unveiled during the summer of 2015.[62][63] Hegnhuset was inaugurated in 2016.

A temporary[64] national monument in Oslo was unveiled on 22 July 2016.

One monolith stands in each municipality.[62][63]

At 53 [places] in Norway, are statues by Nico Widerberg that were anonymously financed.[65]

One monolith was put at Utsikten - a roadside rest area with a view[66] of Utøya; it is located on E16 at Nes in Hole (municipality).[67]

National memorial in Hole municipality

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In June 2017 the government decided that one of the national memorials, should be placed at Utøya-kaia, in Hole municipality;[68][69] the memorial will not [be a work of art, or] have an artistic expression.[70] KORO (no), an agency under the Ministry of Culture, will no longer formally be tied to the process in regard to the memorial in Hole.[71]

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Jan Kjærstad (en) published in 2017, Berge, a novel that is about[72] the attacks and[73] a triple homicide in 1999, in Norway (en).

References

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  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "At least 91 killed in shootings and bomb blast in Norway". NO: VG. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 "Norway honors 77 dead with vigil", The Boston Globe 22 August 2011, webpage: BG22.
  3. ↑ Beaumont, Peter (22 July 2011). "Norway attacks suggest political motive". The Guardian. UK. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  4. ↑ Skevik, Erlend; Jørstad, Atle; Stormoen, Stein-Erik (22 July 2011). "Storberget: - Den pågrepne er norsk". VG Nett (in Norwegian). NO. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Scores killed in Norway attack". BBC. UK. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 Ward, Andrew (22 July 2011). "Youth camp shooting after Oslo bomb". Financial Times. Stockholm. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  7. ↑ "Big Blast Hits Government Buildings in Central Oslo". The New York Times. 23 July 2011.
  8. ↑ "Explosion rocks Oslo | Events". Blogs. Reuters. Archived from the original on 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 "Oslo: Bomb blast near Norway prime minister's office". BBC News. UK. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  10. ↑ Hough, Andrew (22 July 2011). "Oslo explosion: 'several' dead, dozens injured after Norway city blast". The Telegraph. UK. Archived from the original on 29 May 2012. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  11. ↑ "Explosion hits Norwegian PM's office — Europe". Al Jazeera English. 2011-07-22. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  12. ↑ "Explosion In Oslo Government Building". News. Sky. July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  13. ↑ "17 dead in Oslo bombing, shootings; Norwegian held - On Deadline". USA Today. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  14. ↑ "Sigbjørn Johnsen til forsvar for euroen" [Sigbjørn Johnsen in defense of the Euro] (in Norwegian). NO: Aftenposten. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  15. ↑ "Norway on summer vacation". The Research Council of Norway. 1 July 2010. Archived from the original on 13 September 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  16. ↑ Duxbury, Charles (22 July 2011). "Deadly Attacks Shake Norway". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  17. ↑ Rayfield, Jillian (22 July 2011). "Oslo Bomb Attack — Eyewitness Reports". LiveWire. Talking Points Memo. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  18. ↑ "Oslo bomb — latest updates". News. UK: BBC. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  19. ↑ "Bomb blast rocks downtown Oslo". RT. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  20. ↑ "Oslo-trikken: – Det er normal drift, ingen grunn til bekymring". TV 2 (in Norwegian). NO. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  21. ↑ "All trains shut down after suspicious package". Dagbladet. NO. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  22. ↑ Lofstad, Ralf; Haraldsen, Stian; Badi, Diana (22 July 2011). "Disse områdene er evakuert". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). NO. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  23. ↑ "Norwegian massacre gunman was a right-wing extremist who hated Muslims". Dailymail.co.uk. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-07-23.
  24. ↑ "Police: 91 youth campers dead in mass shooting, bombing in Norway". CNN. US. 23 July 2011. Archived from the original on 27 April 2020. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  25. ↑ "Twin terror attacks shock Norway". BBC News. UK. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  26. ↑ "Flere unge skutt og drept på Utøya". Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  27. ↑ Brenna, Jarle (22 July 2011). "Vi er under angrep!". VG Nett (in Norwegian). NO. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  28. ↑ "LIVE: Doden bij bomexplosie in Oslo – schietpartij op jongerenkamp" (in Dutch). NL: NRC.
  29. ↑ "Nine, perhaps 10, killed in Norway shooting". Reuters. 22 July 2011. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  30. ↑ "Blasts and Gun Attack in Norway; 7 Dead". The New York Times. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  31. ↑ "Twin terror attacks shock Norway". News. UK: BBC. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  32. ↑ Nick Meo, Harriet Alexander in Oslo and Robert Mendick (24 July 2011). "Norway killings: The laughing gunman who shot 85 young victims, one by one". The Telegraph. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  33. ↑ "Slik rykket politiet ut". Norwegian Police Service. NO: Politiet. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2011.[permanent dead link]
  34. ↑ "One Norway survivor describes how he played dead as a gunman passed him". News. US: CNN. 23 July 2011. Archived from the original on 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  35. ↑ Live Stream. NO: TV 2.
  36. ↑ "Anders (32) i Oslo ble pågrepet etter bombe og massedrap". Nyhetene. NO: TV 2. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  37. ↑ "Norway bomb suspect bought 6 tons of fertilizer". 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.[permanent dead link]
  38. ↑ 38.0 38.1 "32-åringen skal tilhøre høyreekstremt miljø - Norge". Nyheter. NO: NRK. 2010-01-27. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  39. ↑ Goodman, J. David (23 July 2011). "At Least 80 Are Dead in Norway Shooting". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  40. ↑ "Norway police say 84 killed in Utoeya shooting". Reuters. 23 July 2011. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  41. ↑ "Dynamittgubben". Aftenposten, A-magasinet (in Norwegian). 20 February 2009.
  42. ↑ Torheim, Ørjan, Som en liten gutt: Slik beskrives terrorsiktede Anders Behring Breivik (32) av bergensmann som traff ham (in Norwegian), NO: BT.
  43. ↑ Fondenes, Eivind; Kathleen Buer (23 July 2011). "Terrorsiktede var tidligere medlem av Fremskrittspartiet". Nyhetene (in Norwegian). TV 2. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  44. ↑ Poza, Pedro (23 July 2011). "El presunto autor, un noruego nacionalista vinculado a la extrema derecha". El Mundo (in Spanish). ES. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  45. ↑ Papadakis, Mary (July 24, 2011), Norway's new face of terror, AU: Sunday Herald Sun.
  46. ↑ "Dader bloedbad bewondert Geert Wildersq". News (in Dutch). BE: HLN. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  47. ↑ DF tager ikke afstand fra terror angrebet i Norge, archived from the original on 2012-04-05, retrieved 2011-07-24.
  48. ↑ "Pågrepet 32-åring kalte seg selv nasjonalistisk". Nett (in Norwegian). NO: VG. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
  49. ↑ Kumano-Ensby, Anne Linn (23 July 2011). "Sendte ut ideologisk bokmanus en time før bomben". NRK News (in Norwegian). Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  50. ↑ "Politiet frykter gjerningsmann kan være på frifot" (in Norwegian). NO: VG. 2011-07-23. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  51. ↑ "Frykter at gjerningsmann kan være på frifot" (in Norwegian). NO: Aftenposten. 2011-07-23. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  52. ↑ CNN Wire Staff (23 July 2011). "Police aren't ruling out more suspects in Norway attacks". Archived from the original on 14 January 2012. Retrieved 23 July 2011. {{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  53. ↑ Wernersen, Camilla (23 July 2011). "– Som et mareritt" (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  54. ↑ Gimse, Lars Martin (23 July 2011). "- Vi er alle rystet av ondskapen" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  55. ↑ Ervik, Marthe Rosenvinge (23 July 2011). "- I dag er vi alle AUF-ere" (in Norwegian). Fædrelandsvennen. Archived from the original on 28 September 2011. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  56. ↑ Murtnes, Sindre (23 July 2011). "Kongen om terrorangrepet: - Våre tanker går til ofrene" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. Retrieved 23 July 2011.
  57. ↑ Svein Østerud. "Når 22. juli skal filmes" [when the Norway Attacks (or 22 July) will be filmed] (18 July 2017) Klassekampen. p. 22
  58. ↑ "World leaders condemn Norway atrocities". cbc.ca. 23 July 2011. Retrieved 24 July 2011.
  59. ↑ Karin Moe. "Ein minnestad skal minnast det som verkeleg hende, og bearbeide tapet. Genius loci" [A memorial place is supposed to remind about what really happened - and to process the loss] (10. juli 2017) Klassekampen. p. 7
  60. ↑ Kjell-Erik Nordenson Kallset (1 July 2016). "Tar tilbake Utøya". Klassekampen. p. 2.
  61. ↑ Publisert 19.07.2016, kl. 05.31. (2016-07-19). "50 turer dagen til Utøya på det meste". Nrk.no. Retrieved 2016-07-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  62. ↑ 62.0 62.1 Gabrielle Graatrud (2016-06-18). "Etterlatte frykter at 22.juli-minnestedet blir en bauta over gjerningsmannen". Dagbladet.no. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  63. ↑ 63.0 63.1 "No shame in turning around!". Dagbladet.no. 4 April 2016. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  64. ↑ 27. juni 2016 kl. 08:42 (2016-05-19). "Regjeringen endrer ikke planer for 22. juli-minnesmerke". Nrk.no. Retrieved 2016-07-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  65. ↑ Hvidsten, Sigrid (1 July 2017). "Det er åpenbart at kommunalminister Jan Tore Sanner ikke skulle hatt ansvaret for minnestedene for 22. juli". Dagbladet.no.
  66. ↑ Av Mette Eriksen (27 March 2016). "Må stå på en søppeldynge for å nyte den vakre utsikten". Ringblad.no. Retrieved 2016-07-24.
  67. ↑ Morén, Anette (2 April 2016). "Snu nå, skrinlegg Sørbråten". Klassekampen. p. 37.
  68. ↑ Anders Veberg Øystein Aldridge. "22. juli-minnesmerket etableres på Utøya-kaia". Aftenposten.
  69. ↑ Grindem, Karianne (21 June 2017). "Utøykaia blir nasjonalt minnested etter 22. juli". Dagbladet.no.
  70. ↑ "VG mener: Ja til rosemonument". www.vg.no.
  71. ↑ Tommy Olsson. "Det føles ikke tilfeldig at det gikk kun tre dager fra Koro ble tatt ut av prosessen knyttet til 22. juli-minnesmerket, til Dagbladet angrep Kulturrådet. All makt til pølsemakerne" [It does not feel coincidental that only three days passed, from KORO being removed from the process regarding the 22 July memorial - until Dagbladet attacked Arts Council Norway. All power to the sausage producers] (19 July 2017) Klassekampen. p. 24-5
  72. ↑ Økl, Ingunn; kommentator, Hovedanmelder og. "På smart og snedig vis åpner Jan Kjærstad opp samtalen om 22. juli". Aftenposten.
  73. ↑ "Kjærstads beste på lenge". www.dagsavisen.no.

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