The Norwegian anti-Islam militant who killed 77 people last summer was charged yesterday with terrorism and premeditated murder.
Prosecutors said they would initially seek a sentence of psychiatric care for the admitted killer but might demand 21 years in prison – Norway’s nominal maximum – if an initial diagnosis of psychosis is contradicted by a second opinion.
Anders Behring Breivik, aged 33, has admitted carrying out a July bomb attack that killed eight people at government headquarters in Oslo and a gun massacre hours later that killed 69 people at a Labour Party summer camp. He regarded his targets as “traitors” with immigrant-friendly attitudes, he explained at a preliminary court hearing.
Prosecutor Svein Holden said the killings included “aggravating circumstances” but did not amount to crimes against humanity under Norwegian law.
Prior to his killing spree, Breivik posted a 1,500-page compendium of anti-immigration writings on the internet, claiming that European identity was under threat from waves of Muslim newcomers.
A German clothing company popular among neo-Nazis has apologised for naming one of its shops Breivik, claiming the name related to a Norwegian town and not to the killer. – (Reuters)