Norway Arrests Three Brothers Over Bomb Attack on US Embassy in Oslo

Norwegian Police Arrest Three Brothers Suspected of Carrying Out Embassy Bombing Attack

Three Norwegian citizens with Iraqi heritage were taken into custody by police on Wednesday afternoon as part of an ongoing investigation into the Sunday morning bombing attack on the US embassy in Oslo. The three men, all in their 20s, are suspected of deliberately targeting the embassy with a powerful improvised explosive device (IED). According to police lawyer Christian Hatlo, the brothers were believed to have planted and detonated the bomb, which was concealed inside a backpack.

The blast occurred at the entrance to the embassy’s consular section in western Oslo, causing thick smoke to fill the street. However, there were no reported casualties. Police are examining whether the attack was carried out on behalf of a foreign government, with one hypothesis being that it was an order from a government entity.

A video uploaded to the embassy’s Google Maps page around the time of the blast appeared to show Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, prompting police to open a separate investigation. The person who posted the video wrote in Farsi: “God is great. We are victorious.” Alireza Jahangiri, Iran’s ambassador to Norway, denied any involvement earlier this week.

The arrests have been welcomed by Norway’s Justice Minister Astri Aas-Hansen, who described them as a breakthrough. The country’s security service PST had previously warned that Iran could use criminal networks as proxy actors to carry out operations on its behalf.

Source: Al Jazeera