Explosion In Centre Of Norwegian Capital
Breaking News
An explosion in Oslo has blown out most of the windows of a 17-storey building in the centre of the capital.
Early reports suggested it happened at a government building which contains the offices of the Prime Minister.
It is also thought to house Norway's biggest tabloid newspaper.
A witness reported that as many as eight people had been hurt.
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif Witnesses say several people were hurt in the explosion
Journalist Asgeir Ueland said that Oslo is a popular destination for people from other parts of Norway.
He said the streets were crowded: "It happened when people were packing up for the weekend and leaving their offices.
"There were lots of people with blood on their faces and severe cuts."
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif A picture uploaded to Twitter by user [at]Morganflame
Craig Barnes is in Oslo and said that he is shocked at what has happened.
"It is a very nice, safe place to live.
"Norwegians are very friendly and I think everyone gets on.
Breaking News
3:43pm UK, Friday July 22, 2011
Explosion In Centre Of Norwegian Capital
An explosion in Oslo has blown out most of the windows of a 17-storey building in the centre of the capital.
Early reports suggested it happened at a government building which contains the offices of the Prime Minister.
It is also thought to house Norway's biggest tabloid newspaper.
A witness reported that as many as eight people had been hurt.
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
Witnesses say several people were hurt in the explosion
Journalist Asgeir Ueland said that Oslo is a popular destination for people from other parts of Norway.
He said the streets were crowded: "It happened when people were packing up for the weekend and leaving their offices.
"There were lots of people with blood on their faces and severe cuts."
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
A picture uploaded to Twitter by user [at]Morganflame
Craig Barnes is in Oslo and said that he is shocked at what has happened.
"It is a very nice, safe place to live.
"Norwegians are very friendly and I think everyone gets on.
Witness Craig Barnes Gives His Account
"I think this is going to change a lot of views now. There will be questions regarding safety."
Nearby offices in the Norwegian capital have been evacuated.
Large amounts of glass and metal have been seen in the street.
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
The blast happened at a building in the centre of the capital
Police and fire officials have declined to comment on the cause of the explosion.
The wreckage of a car was seen outside one building and there was early speculation that the damage was consistent with that from a car bomb.
One radio journalist reported from the scene.
"I see that some windows of the government headquarters have been broken.
"Some people covered with blood are lying in the street."
https://teakdoor.com/images/smilies1/You_Rock_Emoticon.gif
A picture uploaded to Twitter by user [at]thormodsen
Norway has experienced problems with several homegrown terror plots linked to al Qaeda.
Last week, a Norwegian prosecutor filed terror charges against an Iraqi-born cleric for threatening Norwegian politicians with death if he was deported.
More to follow ...
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Wor..._To_Be_Injured
Lethal Oslo Bombing: Who Are The Suspects?
Although Scandinavian countries have reputations as liberal havens, there is a long list of groups with grievances who could have carried out the lethal bombing in the centre of Oslo.
Sky News security editor Sam Kiley pointed out that the target - offices of the Government in the centre of town - made it likely that the bomber or bombers were seeking to make a political point rather than kill the maximum number of people.
"This was not an attack on something more vulnerable such as a railway or a crowded shopping mall, this was an attack at the heart of the Norwegian body politic," he said.
"It is clearly designed to send a very powerful political message."
He said groups including the Tamil Tigers and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula had cause to hold a grudge against Norwegian authorities.
Norway has also been very active in the Nato-led operation against Muammar Gaddafi's forces in Libya, and has sent troops to fight the Taliban in Afghanistan.
At home, Kiley said, authorities have - like those in Britain - been trying to get immigrants to the country to conform more to the Norwegian way of life amid concerns home-grown terrorists may pose a threat.
Two suspects are currently in a Norwegian jail awaiting charges relating to a suspected al Qaeda-style terror plot.
Last week, a prosecutor there filed terror charges against an Iraqi-born cleric for threatening Norwegian politicians with death if he is deported.
The indictment followed statements made by Mullah Krekar, the founder of Kurdish Islamist group Ansar al Islam, to various news media outfits.
Kiley added that if it were proven that a car bomb or bombs had caused the devastation it would point security services in the direction of those behind it.
"A car bomb can deliver a very large amount of home-made explosive," he said.
"You could probably get at least a tonne of high explosive in it and you also have the secondary explosive of the fuel in the car.
"It can be an absolutely devastating weapon."
Lethal Oslo Bombing: Who Are The Suspects? - Yahoo! News
Norway Camp Shooting: 'As Many As 30 Dead'
As many as 30 people are feared dead after a shooting at a Norwegian youth camp after a bomb hit the capital Oslo killed at least seven.
Shots were fired by a person reportedly dressed as a police officer at a youth meeting of the ruling Labour Party in Utoya - an island on the outskirts near the capital.
An eyewitness reported seeing between 25 and 30 bodies.
Norwegian police said they thought there could also be explosives on the island.
Around 600 people were believed to be taking part in the summer camp - most of whom were teenagers aged between 14 and 18.
Police said that Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg had been due to attend the event.
Norwegian media said that one man has been arrested after the incident.
He was described as tall and blonde, and spoke fluent Norwegian.
Sky sources reported he was shot and wounded during the arrest.
Emilie Bersaas, 19, was on the island when the shooting started and said that people were running and screaming.
"It was strange - after what happened in Oslo, we were all a bit shaky.
"People are very shaken up as we do not know who is fine and who is not," she said.
"There are a lot of people I do not know anything about.
"It was terrifying - at one point, the shooting was very close to me and hit the building I was in.
"The people in the next room screamed loudly."
Sky's security editor Sam Kiley said a specialist swat team had carried out the arrest.
"The fact they captured him alive is a major breakthrough because they will be able to establish from him if it is an ongoing attack," he said.
"The intelligence community has been expecting that a Mumbai-style attack has been imminent since a year ago.
"The worst-case scenario is not just multiple attacks in one country, but in several countries.
"So we can expect to see a rise in preventative security."
Security expert Bob Ayers said there are only a limited amount of things that can be done to protect people.
"The only thing (authorities) can do is interfere in the planning phase before people are killed.
"If you can not do that, you have to be prepared to react rapidly."
The shooting happened after police confirmed there were "one or more powerful explosions in a government building in Oslo".
Police told people in the Norwegian capital to stay away from the city centre and limit the use of mobile phones.
They also warned people to avoid large gatherings.
At least seven people are believed to have been killed in the bombing and several injured, in the deadliest attack in Norway since World War II.
Sky sources said that survivors reported a strong smell of sulphur which has led to police investigating the theory this was a car bomb using fertiliser nitrate.
Sam Kiley said that earlier this year, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula released a bomb-making handbook which contained notes on how to build fertiliser bombs.
"The knowhow is out there and the materials are out there," he said.
And he added that if it was a fertiliser car bomb, it would have been very damaging.
"You could get a ton of relatively high explosive concentrated in a metal box - then what you have is a gigantic grenade."
The explosion was outside the building that housed the offices of the Prime Minister, although he was not there at the time.
It was also near the finance ministry and the offices of Norway's biggest tabloid newspaper.
Mr Stoltenberg described the situation as "very serious" but said it was too soon to say what caused the explosion.
The Mayor of Oslo, Fabian Stang, said he would not have believed Norway could be attacked.
He said that he had initially hoped the explosion had been caused by an accident.
Asked about the attack on the youth camp on the island, Mr Stang said he wished he could have been there: "To stand in front of the young people and ask the gunman to shoot me instead."
Craig Barnes lives in Oslo and said that he was shocked at what happened.
"It is a very nice, safe place to live," he said.
"Norwegians are very friendly and I think everyone gets on.
"I think this is going to change a lot of views now. There will be questions regarding safety."
Nato member Norway has been the target of threats in the past - particularly for its involvement in Afghanistan and Libya.
The country has also experienced problems with several home-grown terror plots linked to al Qaeda.
Last week, a Norwegian prosecutor filed terror charges against an Iraqi-born cleric for threatening Norwegian politicians with death if he was deported.
The Swedish foreign minister, Carl Bildt, posted a message on Twitter about the bombs, and said "We are all Norwegians."
Foreign Secretary, William Hague, said that any British nationals caught up in the attack would be able to get help from the Embassy.
Meanwhile, there was condemnation from the European Union president Herman Van Rompuy, who described the bombing as an act of "cowardice".
An American state department spokeswoman said they "condemned these despicable acts of violence".
More to follow ...
Norway Camp Shooting: 'As Many As 30 Dead' - Yahoo! News
Norway: Dozens dead, jihadists claim responsibility
A witness says over 20 people died in the shooting on the Norwegian island Utoeya, while seven died in the bomb attack in Oslo. A group of jihadists have claimed responsibility.
"I've seen it with my own eyes, at least 20 dead people lying in the water", Andre Skeie (26) told Reuters by telephone. He said he had gone to the island of Utoeya on his boat to help people evacuate the island after a gunman opened fire there.
Police declined comment on the number of casualties at the youth camp at Utoeya, northwest of Oslo.
A "Nordic-looking" man dressed in a police uniform was arrested on the scene on Utoeya, and said by Norwegian police to be linked to the bomb attacks in the capital, according to AP.
Jihadist group claims responsibility
According to the New York Times, a jihadist terror group called Ansar al-Jihad al-Alami (the Helpers of the Global Jihad) has claimed responsibility for the bomb attack at about 1.30pm GMT that killed seven people in Norway's capital Oslo on Friday.
Will McCants, a terrorism analyst at CNA, a US-based terrorism think-tank, told the New York Times that a jihadist group called Ansar al-Jihad al-Alami (the Helpers of the Global Jihad) had claimed responsibility for the bomb attack on a messageboard known to be used by terrorist groups. The group's message said the attack was in response to Norway's involvement with Western military campaign in Afghanistan, and to "unspecified insults to the Prophet Muhammad" -- likely a reference to cartoon depictions of Muhammad published in Denmark and Norway.
"We have warned since the Stockholm raid of more operations," the group was quoted as saying, referring to a bomb attack in Sweden in December last year. "What you see is only the beginning, and there is more to come."
The newspaper said the group's claim could not be confirmed.
In an interview broadcast by CNN, US President Barack Obama said he had no information yet on the motives, but extended his "personal condolences" to the people of Norway following the blast and shootings in Oslo.
Norway: Dozens dead, jihadists claim responsibility - News - Mail & Guardian Online
