On Saturday July 23, a man in Norway set off a bomb near the prime ministers building in Oslo, killing 7 people, then went to a camp retreat dressed as a police officer and gunned down 86 people, putting the death toll as high as 93 as well as 96 who were injured in the attacks and 4 people who are missing.
The gunman, identified as 32-year-old Anders Behring Breivik, set off the bomb in Oslo and then went over to a summer camp on Utoya island and gunned down children swimming in the lake. Police arrived 90 minutes after the attack began and arrested him. Breivik’s lawyer claims that he surrendered when he ran out of ammunition though police say he still had much on him when arrested.
Breivik’s lawyer Geir Lippestad told Norwegian media: “He thought it was gruesome having to commit these acts, but in his head they were necessary. He wished to attack society and the structure of society.”
Before the attacks, Breivik put out a 1,500-page manifesto where he outlined his dislike of multiculturalism and Muslim immigration and even claimed he was a member of the Knights Templar, a medieval organization. His disliking of the Labour Party in Norway could be a motive since the camp on the island was run by the party.
However, the pain felt by survivors and the families of the fallen are still very deep. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg stated that the first few days felt like “an eternity—hours, days, and nights filled with shock and angst and crying.” Stoltenberg also commented that “Each and every one of those who’ve left us is a tragedy—together, it’s a national tragedy.”
Breivik is scheduled to be in court on Monday where he faces the possibility of a maximum 21 year sentence in a Norwegian prison.