Three brothers have been arrested in reference to the explosion on the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway, authorities mentioned Wednesday.
The brothers had been Norwegian residents of Iraqi origin, police prosecutor Christian Hatlo mentioned in a information convention. They’ve been arrested round 3:30 p.m. native time Wednesday on suspicion of a “terrorist bombing” on the constructing. The boys are of their 20s and weren’t beforehand recognized to police, Hatlo mentioned. Investigators are nonetheless working to find out a motive, Hatlo mentioned.
“We’re nonetheless working from a number of hypotheses. Considered one of them is whether or not that is an order from a authorities entity,” Hatlo mentioned. “That is fairly pure given the goal — the U.S. embassy — and the safety scenario the world is in in the present day,” he mentioned.
Hatlo mentioned investigators are nonetheless working to find out what function the brothers performed within the bombing, which brought about minor injury to the constructing however didn’t lead to any casualties or accidents. Hatlo mentioned that police imagine one man positioned the bomb outdoors the embassy and the opposite two had been “complicit within the act.” Hatlo mentioned police will not be ruling out hyperlinks to “felony networks.”
The explosion occurred at one of many entrances to the U.S. Embassy round 1 a.m. native time, Oslo police beforehand mentioned. Police incident commander Michael Dellemyr advised public broadcaster NRK that the blast hit the doorway of the embassy’s consular part.
Police strengthened safety measures in Oslo and elevated their presence across the embassy after the blast. Police additionally upped safety measures to guard the Iranian diaspora and Jewish communities in Norway. Officers mentioned that there have been no indications of a lingering risk after the explosion.
Frode Larsen, head of the Oslo police investigation unit, advised reporters at a information convention that it might have been a deliberate assault linked to the disaster within the Center East, Reuters reported. He later advised NRK that terrorism was one in every of a number of motives authorities had been investigating.
In its annual risk evaluation, the Norwegian safety service PST mentioned final month that Iran might depend on “proxy actors,” together with “felony networks,” to commit such acts.
Rep. Rick Crawford, chair of the Home Intel Committee, advised Fox Information on Sunday that he believed the explosion “might have been a terrorist assault.” U.S. embassies world wide have been positioned on excessive alert for the reason that conflict in Iran started. A number of have confronted assaults as Tehran hits again at industrial and diplomatic targets.
“We have to be very diligent about not solely our safety right here at house, however clearly targets round (the) world the place there are U.S. belongings together with embassies and so forth,” Crawford mentioned.
