Explosion in Oslo - Government building targeted

[Yog]

At around 15:25 local time, I felt this big bang, sounded like a thunder, and there was a noticeable tremor from where I was sitting.

There has been a huge explosion in the center of the city, right next to the Government building. Huge material damage, many injuries, at least 1 dead, but this number I expect to rise. :(

Should be all over the news shortly.

http://news.google.com/news/more?jfkl=true&cf=all&ned=us&ncl=drgDJMmto9iz69MmXe0VrNsswktxM&topic=h

[Karl Valten]

Yikes.

Yeah, been watching this on the news at the office. Freaky stuff, but I haven't heard any real details. I hope the death toll on this is really low.

[Yog]

Shortly after the bombing, there was a shooting incident at an island nearby for young politicians of the government party Labour. The police have reason to believe the shooting is linked to the bombing. Some mad man dressed up as police asked people to gather around him, then started shooting with an automated weapon.

Eyewitness reports at least 25 dead bodies at the shore, maybe as many as 50 dead in total. There are also many many injuries from the shooting.

[Droo]

Bloody hell! :(

[Morgan Evanar]

This is absolutely awful :(

[Jedi Master Carr]

This is awful and very horrible to see.

[Karl Valten]

Geez, the hell is sparking all this violence?

[Yog]

9-10 people confirmed dead at the island shooting, so the number is likely not as high as first reported, but could still rise if they find bodies in the water. 7 confirmed dead in the bombing. The shooter has been arrested and is now being questioned by police.

Police is emphasizing these two events are connected.

[Jedi Master Carr]

It is good they caught him. CNN is reporting he is white with blond hair, so I guess it is unlikely Al-Qaeda. I guess he is either a homegrown terrorist or just a disturbed person.

[Yog]

It is good they caught him. CNN is reporting he is white with blond hair, so I guess it is unlikely Al-Qaeda. I guess he is either a homegrown terrorist or just a disturbed person.
Yes, early indications are he might be a disturbed individual who actually acted alone on this. Which would be remarkable, but also a relief because then we might not get any more of these. It would suck if I had to worry about bombs whenever I take the subway.

Edit - more specifically, the police think the act was politically motivated.

[Jedi Master Carr]

It would be a relief if it wasn't Al-Qaeda or another international terrorist group. If it is politically motivated, maybe he had some hatred of the current govt. Also, I am not sure are there any homegrown terrorists in Norway? I know Neo-nazis are prevalent in Germany and Austria but don't know if they are a problem in Norway.

[Yog]

It would be a relief if it wasn't Al-Qaeda or another international terrorist group. If it is politically motivated, maybe he had some hatred of the current govt. Also, I am not sure are there any homegrown terrorists in Norway? I know Neo-nazis are prevalent in Germany and Austria but don't know if they are a problem in Norway.
Terrorism here was unheard of until this point. There are some radical individuals though, 3 were arrested at some point with links to Al Qaida, and then there is this guy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mullah_Krekar) very controversial figure. The police has specifically said there is no reason to suspect this was an act of international terrorism though.

There is very small right wing extreme environment here. You hardly ever hear about them on the news. But yes, it is a strong possibility (especially considering the targets seemed to be labor party).

E: This appears to be the shooter with a rifle, searching for victims on the beach.. :(
http://pub.tv2.no/multimedia/TV2/drfront/2011-07/22/11-a0b28f94-1a998e35.jpeg

[Jedi Master Carr]

It would be a relief if it wasn't Al-Qaeda or another international terrorist group. If it is politically motivated, maybe he had some hatred of the current govt. Also, I am not sure are there any homegrown terrorists in Norway? I know Neo-nazis are prevalent in Germany and Austria but don't know if they are a problem in Norway.
Terrorism here was unheard of until this point. There are some radical individuals though, 3 were arrested at some point with links to Al Qaida, and then there is this guy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mullah_Krekar) very controversial figure. The police has specifically said there is no reason to suspect this was an act of international terrorism though.

There is very small right wing extreme environment here. You hardly ever hear about them on the news. But yes, it is a strong possibility (especially considering the targets seemed to be labor party).

That makes sense to me, there are no reports of more than one person involved. It reminds me of Oklahoma City more than international terrorists. Of course over here the news people aren't even going that way. The so called terrorist experts are saying it still could be international terrorists and one guy suggested it was an Al-Qeada cell. I don't think they just should jump to those kind of conclusions.

[Darth Turbogeek]

The so called terror experts should shut the fuck up because I dont want to be furious at some retarded dickhead shooting their mouth off, I want to feel sorry for the victims of what is clearly one disturbed individual.

[Yog]

The so called terror experts should shut the fuck up because I dont want to be furious at some retarded dickhead shooting their mouth off, I want to feel sorry for the victims of what is clearly one disturbed individual.
Yeah, this is the frontpage for The Sun tomorrow:
'Al-Qaeda Masacre' http://i.imgur.com/1JUJ6.jpg

Fox News mention Al Qaida and islam every second sentence in articles about the bombing. :rolleyes


Here is what we now so far:

- At least 10 found dead at the island, death count likely to rise.
- 7 found dead by the bombing.
- The shooter has been arrested, and is being questioned. The police had a razzia on his apartment.
- He was spotted at the bombing site showing suspicious behavior, in police uniform, driving away in a brown van.
- He is 32 years old, and Norwegian citizen.
- He is likely a right wing extremists / neo nazi
- Internet detectives found his name and identity on facebook (http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002651290254)
- They found undetonated explosives at the island.


edit - Some speculation about being linked to an incident 10 years earlier, but likely unrelated.

[Morgan Evanar]

This bombing is much more in line with Oklahoma City than anything else, and it probably is some right wing lunatic.

Either way the whole thing is absolutely awful.

[Aurelias Kazaar]

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/23/world/europe/23oslo.html?pagewanted=1&_r=2&hp

Group called Ansar al-Jihad al-Alami, or the Helpers of the Global Jihad, has claimed responsibility.

NYT could be wrong, but they're saying that's who it is.

[Yog]

Group called Ansar al-Jihad al-Alami, or the Helpers of the Global Jihad, has claimed responsibility.
They are just trying to claim credit for something they did not do, and making themselves look silly in the process. Especially now that we identified the responsible as an ethnic Norwegian anti-muslim nazi, christian conservative free market libertarian nuthead, who would love to burn the Koran on a bonfire.

[Aurelias Kazaar]

10-4 just saying what I saw.

[Yog]

10-4 just saying what I saw.
Yeah, there is a lot of bad information out there. BBC is actually among the worst, right now. NYT is right that "Helpers of the Global Jihad", an islamist group tried to claim credit, but it quickly became obvious that they were unrelated.



This bombing is much more in line with Oklahoma City than anything else, and it probably is some right wing lunatic.

Either way the whole thing is absolutely awful.
Yeah, there is a lot of similarities to the Oklahoma City bombing.

[Aurelias Kazaar]

and the even creepier part...

http://twitter.com/#!/AndersBBreivik (http://twitter.com/#%21/AndersBBreivik)

That's from Sunday.

[Jedi Master Carr]

10-4 just saying what I saw.
Yeah, there is a lot of bad information out there. BBC is actually among the worst, right now. NYT is right that "Helpers of the Global Jihad", an islamist group tried to claim credit, but it quickly became obvious that they were unrelated.



This bombing is much more in line with Oklahoma City than anything else, and it probably is some right wing lunatic.

Either way the whole thing is absolutely awful.
Yeah, there is a lot of similarities to the Oklahoma City bombing.


Yeah, there are always groups out there who take credit to try to get attention. There was a group who did that after Oklahoma City. We are just lucky the bomb didn't go off on the island. He could have killed even more people.

[Atreyu]

and the even creepier part...

http://twitter.com/#!/AndersBBreivik (http://twitter.com/#%21/AndersBBreivik)

That's from Sunday.
He looks like Reinhard Heydrich (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhard_Heydrich). :\

[Rutabaga]

I just got a push notification from CNN on my phone saying that the number of dead at the lake is now 80. :cry

This is horrific beyond belief. What a terrible, terrible tragedy. :cry

[Yog]

"At least" 80 they say now. Then the eyewitness accounts saying there were many more are accurate.

This has to be the worst shooting incident ever? :(

[Darth Turbogeek]

How the hell does one man shoot over 80 people?!?!?! That cant be right. Martin Bryant shot 35 and that was mind blowing enough but over 80?!?!

Fuck

[Jedi Master Carr]

How the hell does one man shoot over 80 people?!?!?! That cant be right. Martin Bryant shot 35 and that was mind blowing enough but over 80?!?!

Fuck

I would imagine there were more dead at the bombing then they first announced. It is horrible what happened.

[Park Kraken]

I wouldn't be suprised if the bombing downtown was a decoy for the attack on the Youth Camp. A small island packed with 600 Youths plus camp consuelors, he goes out there dressed in a police uniform, with an automatic weapon, probably an assault rifle, probably with extra clips, and the bombing downtown would buy him the time and confusion that he would need to make one or more sweeps of the entire island, shooting people as he went. I also wouldn't be suprised if he had co-horts involved in the planning and execution, this just seems a little too coordinated and efficent an attack for just one person to pull off.

[Yog]

How the hell does one man shoot over 80 people?!?!?! That cant be right. Martin Bryant shot 35 and that was mind blowing enough but over 80?!?!

Fuck

I would imagine there were more dead at the bombing then they first announced. It is horrible what happened.
The body count is up to 91 right now. The casualties for the bombing have stayed at 7 for a long time. So far, they found 84 young people in the age of 15-25 who got gunned down and killed in that shooting spree at the island. The number could still rise.

Apparently, he was a hunter, and they had nowhere to escape on that small island of about 400 meters. Some of them tried to swim away in in the cold water in panic, but he fired at those as well.

http://i.imgur.com/p2qQE.jpg

Youtube video from island (uncensored and not mind safe)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8LAt7mqoa0&feature=youtu.be





I wouldn't be suprised if the bombing downtown was a decoy for the attack on the Youth Camp. A small island packed with 600 Youths plus camp consuelors, he goes out there dressed in a police uniform, with an automatic weapon, probably an assault rifle, probably with extra clips, and the bombing downtown would buy him the time and confusion that he would need to make one or more sweeps of the entire island, shooting people as he went.
Yes, most likely, the bombing was a decoy. He used his disguise as a police officer to 'inform' the youth about the bombing in the city center, and told them to gather close around him..




I also wouldn't be suprised if he had co-horts involved in the planning and execution, this just seems a little too coordinated and efficent an attack for just one person to pull off.
I would not be surprised either. But judging from witness accounts and him being present at both the bombing and the shooting implies he pulled off both. He was registered with a company that "grows vegetables, melons, roots and tuberous plants". The theory is he used that firm as a facade to buy the enormous amount of fertilizers to construct the bomb.

[Yog]

There are now reports there may have been a second shooter, still on the loose..

**UPDATE**
Police just arrested another guy. He was caught with a knife in his pocket at the rescue camp for victims, claiming he was member of the party. "I carried a knife because I do not feel safe!", he yelled according to NRK before being escorted away by police in handcuffs. Another reporter (TV2) says he had dark hair and was smiling as he was arrested.

**UPDATE 2**
The arrested knife carrying person is likely not connected to the attack. It seems he was a just a scared youth. If there is a second shooter, he is still on the loose.

**UPDATE 3**
A photo what police believes is the shooter surveying his victims.
http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/norge/1.7723857

[Rutabaga]

That photo is just too...I can't even find the right description. Words truly do fail me at this moment.

From what I've been reading, it appears as if Norway now has their own Timothy McVeigh. :\

[Park Kraken]

And the idea of the bombing being a decoy doesn't rule out the political motive either. I've heard and read of talk concerning youth camps such as these being "Brainwashing camps" to turn the youths there into political party members of one party or another, most of the talk coming from extremist people or groups.

[Yog]

There is now a manifesto / diary / terror manual circulating on the Internet written by the suspect, and it popped up on SA forums eventually. The police is apparently aware of this 1,500 pages word document. I glanced briefly through the book and the promotion "trailer" on youtube. This is a disturbing individual, that is for sure.

He wrote in details how to make the bomb, and what he did to prepare for the attacks.

I expect this is going to show up all over the media very soon.

[Jedi Master Carr]

I wouldn't be shocked if there is at least one more person involved. It is shocking he was able to kill so many. The killer at Virginia Tech killed 32, although, these kids had no where to run where as in the previous case many hid in rooms and could escape the killer.

[Estelle Russard]

Unbelievably awful :(

[Yog]

"If one man can create that much hate, you can only imagine how much love we as a togetherness can create."
- Stine Renate Håheim


http://i.imgur.com/fu6gC.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/mOaEt.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/apP0U.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/NuhX7.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/WQanO.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/eeamL.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Js1mi.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/lbenCh.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/Ncl03.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/cqupS.jpg

[Yog]

More photos from around the country..

http://i.imgur.com/hMMFg.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/CF4lV.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/1A5gk.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/38BI6.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/YaRtU.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/pjhgZ.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/PAB6L.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/sLt6H.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/45eYv.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/IvfLV.jpg

[Hera]

Wow, those are some amazing photos, Yog.

So sad.

[Droo]

I saw some impressive photos earlier but these are profoundly moving.

[Rutabaga]

Beautiful photos....

[Loklorien s'Ilancy]

That last one especially is so touching :(