[ 2011-07-25 ]

It is not clear if Mr Breivik's court appearance will be open or closed to the public

Norway gunman faces court hearing
The man blamed for Friday's twin terror attacks in
Norway is due to make his first appearance in
court.

Anders Behring Breivik, 32, admits carrying out a
massacre on an island youth camp and a bombing in
the capital Oslo in which at least 93 people
died.

He is said to be linked to far right, anti-Islamic
organisations, and to have spent years planning
the operation.

At least 96 people were injured in the attacks -
the country's worst since World War II.

Norway will observe a minute's silence at 1200
local time (1000 GMT).

Mr Breivik is set to appear at the hearing an hour
later. He has said he will explain his actions to
the court. Earlier he described the attacks as
"gruesome but necessary".

But it is not clear if the court session will be
open or closed to the public. A judge is set to
rule on a police request for the hearing be held
behind closed doors.

There have been calls for a media blackout of the
trial so as not to give Mr Breivik a platform for
his views.

Under Norwegian law, he faces a maximum of 21
years in jail if convicted, although that sentence
can be extended if a prisoner is deemed a threat
to the public.

Police said while the suspect has admitted to the
killings, he has not accepted criminal
responsibility for them.

His lawyer, Geir Lippestad, told Norwegian media
on Sunday: "He thought it was gruesome having to
commit these acts, but in his head, they were
necessary.

"He wished to attack society and the structure of
society."

Still pictures of the suspect, wearing a wetsuit
and carrying an automatic weapon, appeared in a
12-minute anti-Muslim video called Knights Templar
2083, which appeared briefly on YouTube.

A 1,500-page document written in English and said
to be by Mr Breivik - posted under the pseudonym
of Andrew Berwick - was also put online hours
before the attacks.

The bomb in Oslo targeted buildings connected to
Norway's governing Labour Party, and the youth
camp on Utoeya island was also run by the party.

'Dum-dum bullets'

It was reported on Monday that Crown Princess
Mette-Marit's stepbrother, Trond Berntsen, an
off-duty police officer, was among those killed at
the youth camp. He was the son of Mette-Marit's
stepfather, who died in 2008.

Bodies of those killed on the island were moved to
a morgue in Oslo on Sunday.

More details have emerged about the killings and
the police operation which led to Mr Breivik's
apprehension.

Police said officers trying to get to the island
had been delayed because they had difficulty
finding a suitable boat to take them there, and
there were no police helicopters close enough.

The gunman was arrested an estimated 90 minutes
after the massacre began. Police say he still had
a lot of ammunition, and hospital sources said he
had used dum-dum bullets, designed to disintegrate
inside the body and cause maximum internal
damage.

One of the first victims on the island was an
off-duty police officer who had been hired by the
camp organisers to provide security, Reuters news
agency reported authorities as saying.

At least seven people were killed in the bomb
attack on the government quarter in Oslo. Soon
afterwards, 85 people were shot dead as the
gunman, dressed as a policeman, ran amok on the
nearby island of Utoeya. An 86th victim from the
island shooting died in hospital on Sunday.

At least four people from the island camp shooting
are yet to be found; it is thought some may have
drowned after swimming out into the lake to escape
the hail of bullets.

In Oslo, police said the death toll could rise
further as bodies or body parts were in buildings
damaged by the bomb but still too unstable to
search.

Police say they are not searching for a second
attacker but have not ruled out more people being
involved, after eyewitness reports suggested a
possible second shooter.

Source - BBC

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