Norway shooting gay club

A year-old man has been arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder and terrorist acts after a shooting in the centre of Norway's capital, Oslo. Two people died and 21 were wounded early on Saturday in what police called an "act of Islamist terrorism". Norway's prime minister told the BBC the suspect was questioned in May, but was not deemed a threat at the time.

Eyewitnesses said the suspect took out a gun from his bag and started firing, forcing terrified people to either throw themselves to the ground or flee. The attacker was arrested by police officers - who were helped by bystanders - minutes later.

Norway bar shooting suspect known to intelligence services

Two weapons were retrieved at the crime scene by police, one of them a fully automatic gun. The terror alert level in Norway has now been raised to its highest level, though the country's PST intelligence service said it currently had "no indication" further attacks were likely. Oslo's annual gay Pride parade was due to be held on Saturday, and was formally cancelled on police advice.

But despite that, hundreds of people marched near the scene later in the day, shouting: "We're here, we're queer, we won't disappear! Rainbow flags and flowers were laid near the scene of the attack, which was sealed off by shooting tape, and bystanders comforted each other with hugs. The gunman was known to security services since as a "suspected radicalised Norway, and had a history of mental illness, Norway's PST intelligence service said.

Pride was a target in itself or whether there are other motives. King Harald, Norway's monarch, said he and his family were "horrified" by the violence. He said "we must stand together" to defend "freedom, diversity and respect for each other". EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen tweeted that she was "shocked by the heinous attack on innocent people", while French President Emmanuel Macron gay "We stand stronger against hate if we stand together.

Witnesses who were at the London Pub have told how they fled to the basement, where 80 to terrified partygoers were trying to hide. Bili Blum-Jansen told TV2: "Many called their partners and family, it felt almost as if they were saying goodbye. Others helped calm down those who were extremely terrified. There were more and more and more shots, so I escaped into the inner bar and tried to get as many as possible with me," he told Norway's public broadcaster NRK.

A woman told the Verdens Gang newspaper that the gunman had taken club aim at his targets. There was a man covered in blood motionless on the floor," she said. Another man told the newspaper he had seen a lot of people on the ground with head wounds. Skip to content. Oslo shooting: Norway attack being treated as Islamist terrorism, police say.

Share Save. Tributes are being paid at the crime scene in the aftermath of overnight shootings in the centre of Oslo. The authorities later said the suspect was a Norwegian national. Of the 21 injured, 10 were in a serious condition.