Two men were killed and 23 people injured in nightclubs in Oslo on 25 June 2022. Zaniar Matapour (43) is charged with murder, attempted murder and acts of terrorism. Islamist Arfan Bhatti and two other men are charged with complicity in the attack. On Thursday, PST came up with a new threat assessment around this year’s Pride event from 23 June to 1 July, which the organizers have already announced will be bigger than ever. Summary of PST’s threat assessment for 2023: LGBT+ people and gathering places are part of the enemy image of both right-wing extremists and extreme Islamists and have been actualized as targets in the past year. Both far-right and extreme Islamist propaganda encourage attacking easily accessible targets with few security measures. Populous targets with few or no security measures are therefore attractive terrorist targets, and a large proportion of carried out and averted attacks in recent years have been aimed at such targets. It is particularly Pride events that gather large crowds that will be attractive targets. Means of attack in both extreme Islamist and far-right terrorist attacks are likely to be simple and readily available means. Security measures for a potential target can lead to target displacement, so that threat actors change their mode and choose more easily accessible targets in fringe zones between secured and unsecured areas. In the report on the threat assessment, the PST writes that the terrorist threat in Norway is moderate, but the PST and the police still consider it possible that we will see attempted terrorist acts from both the far-right and extreme Islamists. The police encourage everyone to celebrate Pride In a press release on Thursday afternoon, the police write that those who previously will be part of the celebration. – The police themselves will fly the rainbow flag at police duty stations and participate in various events. We will ensure that the framework surrounding this year’s events is taken care of so that everyone can have a safe and good Pride celebration, says Bjørn Vandvik, department director in the Norwegian Police Directorate. Knew about the terrorist threat In the aftermath of the attack, criticism has, among other things, been directed at PST. This was partly for not notifying the police when they received information about a possible terrorist threat against Norway. In January this year, VG and news were able to report that PST had been notified by the intelligence service about a possible terrorist attack several days before the mass shooting. At the same time, it emerged how the Norwegian Intelligence Service notified PST even before the shooting took place. The background was information an agent had received in chats, which VG has mentioned, among other things. In one of the chats, the wanted Islamist requested approval for the attack by IS before it happened, on behalf of “brothers” who were to carry it out in Scandinavia. The chief of police in Oslo received information from PST that they were on a terror alert only two days after the terrorist attack on 25 June.
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PST with threat assessment around pride – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
