Norway Island of Utoya Massacre Chronicled. As it happened: Norway attacks aftermath

Photograph  taken Thursday when Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere made a speech to those at the camp on Utoya

Story by the BBC

Photos by Reuters and AFP/Getty Images

Videos by TheAustralian and NBC

Washington Post link: http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/why-norway/2011/07/23/gIQAuJD5UI_video.html

0908: The BBC's security correspondent Gordon Corera said there were comparisons with the Oklahoma City bombing in the US in 1995. He said: "That was done largely by a single person (Timothy McVeigh) with a little bit of help from others." He said Norwegian police would want to know if the gunman had help from a network. He said: "Did he have a network or did he have military training? How did he carry out a bombing and then carry out so many killings? That does suggest some sort of experience."

0914: Norwegian Labour politician Stine Renate Haheim, 27, told BBC News what she had seen on Utoeya: "People were saying we're safe, the police are here. Then we saw a man in a police uniform and he starting shooting people one by one. We turned and ran. We were just trying to keep safe and trying to take care of each other. He was very calm. I didn't hear him speak."

0934: Via Twitter It would appear that Anders Behring Breivik, the 32-year-old suspect in the attacks, recently set up a Twitter profile. Last Sunday, the only chilling tweet from the account: "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100,000 who have only interests."

0931: Gordon Corera says: "There are suspicions he might have posted something on a far-right neo-Nazi website. He might have expressed strongly anti-Muslim sentiments. Clearly there was some sort of political agenda. He bombed the government offices and was going for people from the governing party. The police won't confirm it but there seems to be a suggestion that he wants to explain his activities."

0939: Eskil Pedersen, leader of the Norwegian Labour youth movement, told a press conference he did not see the gunman but it dawned on him that the gunshots were a continuation of the "terrorist attack" in Oslo. He said: "It's obvious that our entire democracy has been attacked...We always look forward to it (the summer camp on Utoya) and it has meant so much to us historically. In the Labour youth movement there are 10,000 members and there are many who feel like this...This will change Norway and hopefully for the better but it's too early to say how."

0949: PM Jens Stoltenberg says Norway does not have a big problem with far-right wing extremists but he said the police are looking into these groups following the attacks.

0950: Eyewitness Jorgen Benone said: "The guy was dressed as a policeman and he was trying to suggest that he was kind of helping us and he said, 'Come here!' He had a rifle which he was using to shoot at us. It was total chaos: people jumping into the water and trying to swim to the other side. I believe several lost their lives as they tried to get over to the mainland. Some hid behind stones. Somebody sat quietly. I saw people being shot."

1001: Details - some of it from his Facebook page - are beginning to emerge about the gunman on Utoya, which has allowed this profile of Anders Behring Breivik to be drawn.

1003: BBC journalist Jorn Madslien, who is Norwegian, has written this article about Norway's far-right extremists and he says: "Though members of the Norwegian far-right movement have carried out attacks in the past, it has historically been a small community, according to neo-Nazi watchers."

1006: Norwegian media have reported that Breivik set up a Twitter account a few days ago and posted a single message: "One person with a belief is equal to 100,000 who have only interests."

1008: The British Foreign Office has updated its travel advice to Britons in Norway and urged them to stay indoors in the wake of the attacks. About 250,000 British tourists visit the country every year.

1016: Josephine Simonsen, who was in central Oslo when the bomb went off, said: "It felt like the whole earth was just shaking, and all of Oslo, but it was so quiet afterwards. That was what hit me, not actually the sound of the bomb or the shaking, it was how quiet it was afterwards. But I saw it, and I saw this big, big mushroom of black, kind of, just above me."

1019: Earlier Adrian Pracon, a survivor of the Utoya attack, gave the BBC a detailed account of the incident. He said he played dead to survive and added: "He came closer, I could feel his breath, I could feel his boots, I could feel the warmth of the barrel."

1019: Via Email Maureen Johnson, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire Why are people talking about the suspect's potentially 'anti-Islamic' views? He hasn't targeted Muslims in any way.

1026: Paul Rogers, a professor of peace studies at Bradford University, told the BBC that occasionally in some individuals extreme Christian fundamentalism can turn to violence. He says examples include Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, and the Port Arthur massacre (in Tasmania in 1996) and he says that may be the case with Breivik.

1028: The VG newspaper - Norway's biggest selling paper - has quoted one eyewitness as saying that there were two gunmen on Utoya. These are unconfirmed reports.

1029: US President Barack Obama has offered his condolences to the people of Norway and said it showed that the international community needed to co-operate in the fight against terrorism.

1030: Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said: "Utoya was my youth paradise and yesterday it was turned into hell."

1032: Via Email James Waring from Lancashire "I was on holiday in Oslo, sitting with three friends in a cafe, when we heard something akin to thunder. Everything seemed to go into slow motion. We exited the cafe and the real horror sunk in as bloodied people started to stumble down into the square. I looked to a corner shop in which I had withdrawn money minutes before the blast. The ATM stood behind a large glass window and large, toothlike shards of glass were facing inwards. I hate to think what could have happened if I had been there."

1035: Lisa-Marie Husby told the BBC: "We ran to a cabin in the forest and he was running behind us. We got in the cabin and locked the door. I hid under the bed. It was quiet for 15 minutes and then he was trying to get into the cabin where we were hiding. He shot through the door and the most terrifying part was that he was sticking a gun through the window...I hid under the bed for two hours until I knew I was safe."

1037: The Queen has written to King Harald of Norway to express her shock and sadness at the attacks in his country. She said her thoughts were with the Norwegian people.

1039: Survivor Lisa-Marie Husby told the BBC she had heard that police suspected the gunman had also planted bombs on Utoeya, which did not go off.

1043: Via Twitter @HelsFP Woke up at 3am thinking #norwayattacks were a nightmare. Sadly they are real. Inconceivable in peaceful, safe, beautiful Scandinavia.

1053: Oslo police spokeswoman Carol Sandbye told the BBC: "He has been charged with two counts of terrorism. They have just started to interrogate him." She said she could not comment on what had been found at his flat or what he had written on social networking sites. She said he would have to appear in court within three days.

1055: Via Twitter Former Sunday Times editor Andrew Neil @afneil says: "So many so called terrorist experts rushed to airwaves yesterday to expound on why #Norway tragedy had to be work of #islamists."

1056: Via Email Maria from Oslo "In the past few hours we've found a face to attatch to the gruesome acts. As it turns out, this is the face of a blonde, blue-eyed caucasian man. A description that could match many a Norwegian. However, what needs to be the focus now is not this madman and his mad cause or he'll get exactly the attention that he wanted. What needs to be our focus is rebuilding our city and assisting those in need."

1058: The BBC News Channel says media reports in Norway paint a portrait of Breivik as a "loner", who lived with his mother in a wealthy suburb of west Oslo, was well educated and enjoyed hunting.

1105: Reuters say the Utoya attack is the worst example of so-called "spree killings". The previous worst incident came in 1982 when a South Korean policeman, Woo Bum Kong, ran amok while drunk and killed 57 people and wounded 38 before blowing himself up.

1107: British Prime Minister, David Cameron, said the loss of life in Norway was "absolutely horrific". He said: "It's hard to comprehend. Norway are old friends, allies and neighbours. Everyone in Britain will want to stand together with the Norwegian people in the days of sorrow that lie ahead."

1109: Via Twitter Journalist Ketil B Stensrud in Norway It's not the time for comparisons, but the Norway attacks have more casualties than Virginia Tech and Columbine combined. The scale of this is really beyond comprehension. The worst tragedy in modern Norwegian history. We're all in shock. We're all mourning relatives today.

1112: Survivor Dana Barzingi told the BBC: "There was some guy that...was acting like he was a policeman and was shooting around the island. He had a bag with many weapons and such and ammo (ammunition)... he had a lot of ammo. Afterwards there were many shot people, so I saved... I tried to save those I could, but there were people there that I couldn't do anything for."

1116: The quote: "One person with a belief is equal to the force of 100 000 who have only interests" which Breivik is reported to have posted on his Twitter account shortly before the attacks is being attributed to 19th century British philosopher John Stuart Mill, the father of utilitarianism.

1118: Hans Torgersen, a reporter with the VG newspaper, tells the BBC he is sure the Labour Party was the target of the attack and he said it was thought Breivik was annoyed by what he perceived at its "relaxed attitude towards Islamism".

1122: A former Prime Minister of Norway, Thorbjorn Jagland, tells the BBC gun laws are quite strict and it is "very difficult" to own a gun. He said he thinks questions instead should be asked about whether the police, while concentrating on the threat from foreign terror groups, had taken their eyes off the threat from native Norwegians.

1125: Earlier Astrid Arnslett, from the Norwegian Red Cross, said their operations were a mixture of search and rescue and counselling for the survivors. She told the BBC: "We are providing people for the young people so there is someone for them to talk to and they are not sitting alone." She said: "Yesterday was a terrifying day and now it's up to the police to figure out what happened."

1130: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, on a visit to Indonesia, says: "The United States strongly condemns any kind of terrorism no matter where it comes from or who perpetuates it and this tragedy strikes right at the heart of the soul of a peaceful people. Norway is well known for its efforts to resolve conflicts, bring people together, it sets a high example for social entrepreneurship. This terrible event is especially heartbreaking because so many of the victims were young people."

1130: Via Twitter The Sunday Times's Camilla Long I am DISGUSTED by intrusiveness of cameras on Utoya, especially Sky News just now. Barely pixellated pictures of teenagers in bodybags = WRONG.

This undated image obtained on July 23, 2011 on Facebook shows the 32-year-old suspect questioned by Norway's police over twin attacks on a youth camp and the government headquarters - Photo by AFP/Getty Images -.

1140: Uncorroborated reports by Reuters in Oslo say a farm supply chain sold six tonnes of fertiliser to the suspect, Anders Behring Breivik, on 4 May.

1143: The British ambassador to Norway, Jane Owen, tells the BBC: "Norway is a very small country with under five million people, with the majority of those living in the Oslo region. The bomb was a huge and horrible shock yesterday and hot on the heels of that came the attack on Utoeya."

1143: Via Twitter UK Labour MP Caroline Flint Rush by terrorism experts and politicos to blame Islamists for slaughter in Norway - once again it's a madman with access to lethal weapons.

1146: The Norwegian Prime Minister, Jens Stoltenberg, has arrived at the hotel in Sundvollen, where many of the Utoya survivors are being cared for. He was greeted by Eskil Pedersen, leader of the Norwegian Labour Party's youth movement.

1149: Norwegian Foreign Office spokesman Frode Andersen tells the BBC: "Most people will know someone who knows someone who was there. This will take time to absorb and the whole nation is in mourning...People are in disbelief and shock."

1152: Via Twitter @Dr_Ulrichsen says: "Breivik was member of right-wing Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) for 10 years 1997-2007 and active in its youth wing."

1155: Via Twitter @blakehounsell says he has been reading an online document which is believed to be attributed to Breivik and he says: "Breivik also praises the English Defence League profusely and calls for setting up a Norwegian version of it."

1159: Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi has condemned the attacks in Norway and offered Tehran's sympathies to the people and government of Norway.

1203: Oddny Estenstad, a spokeswoman for a Norwegian farm co-operative, said the suspect had been a customer. She told the AFP news agency: "We sold him six tonnes of fertiliser, which is a relatively standard order." Fertiliser can be used to make bombs.

1208: BBC correspondent Richard Galpin, who is at the water's edge at Sundvollen, said: "The search for bodies continues. We have seen a lot of boats going out and coming back and dive teams are searching the water. We know many people tried to swim to safety and we know the gunman started shooting at them and the fear is that there are more bodies. The police have not accounted for everyone on the island."

1208: Via Twitter EU President Herman Van Rompuy Horrified by the latest news from Norway. My profound solidarity to the Norwegian people and government.

1211: BBC correspondent Richard Galpin says the VG newspaper has posted a story on its website in the last few minutes claiming police are searching for a second suspect but he says he has not been able to confirm that claim.

1211: Via Twitter Dr Geoff Nash in Durham In Britain the media rushed to judgment that this was the work of Muslim terrorists. We need to understand in the West that terrorism of this kind is a sickness of the modern world, not limited to the ethnic or religious 'other'. It is right here, within our own societies.

1217: A man is reported to have been arrested at the hotel in Sundvollen, apparently because he had a knife in his pocket. It is not clear if he was suspected of involvement in the events on Utoya.

1217: Via Twitter Avenir from Oslo I was at work when the bomb went off. We all thought it was a thunderstorm, then a few minutes later a friend called to say we had been hit by terrorism. It is terrible to hear all this happening in Norway, a very safe country with the highest standard of living on earth. No one expected this to happen in Norway.

1219: "The attack was squarely aimed at the values Norwegians treasure most. Their openness, freedom of expression and feeling of safety have all been shaken to the core," argues Norwegian journalist Liss Goril Anda in her personal viewpoint article on the BBC News website.

1222: A man has been arrested by police at Sundvollen. A reporter for the Norwegian broadcaster NRK said: "The young man said he had a knife in his pocket 'because he did not feel safe'."

1227: The BBC's Security Correspondent Gordon Corera says initial speculation pointed the finger at al-Qaeda - possibly because of Norwegian troops' presence in Afghanistan - but it now seems clear the attacker had a domestic agenda.

1228: Hugo Martins in Portugal writes: The maximum sentence in Norway is usually 21 years. I do not favour the death penalty, but a case like this makes you think.

1236: In the aftermath of Friday's attacks some vivid images have emerged from the bomb scene in Oslo and from the island of Utoeya.

1237: Via Email Frank from Sawtry in Cambridgeshire writes: Why are you giving publicity to the perpertrator of this crime by showing his photograph? He will become a 'hero' of the extremist right-wing. Surely you can report the tragedy without resorting to free publicity for his crime. I'm 85 years old and still remember the Holocaust.

1243: Following reports of a man being arrested near the hotel in Sundvollen where Mr Stoltenberg is visiting, the AP news agency said the man, who was aged around 20, was detained by two officers and led to a police car. AP said the man told reporters he was a member of the Norwegian Labour Party's youth wing and was carrying a knife: "Because I feel unsafe."

1243: Via Twitter Journalist Stian Pride in Oslo tweets: About to head down to the city centre. Not sure why, not sure I want to, feel like I should.

1249: Britain's Home Secretary Theresa May says she has spoken to Norway's Justice Minister Knut Storberget and added: "I made clear to Minister Storberget that we will help in any way we can. In particular, I offered police assistance, which we stand ready to provide should Norway request it."

1251: The AFP news agency says Breivik was the manager of an organic farm, Breivik Geofarm, which would explain how he was able to buy fertiliser.

1255: The BBC News Channel says it is not known exactly how many people were on Utoya at the time of the attack but it is thought to be between 500 and 700.

1255: Via Twitter ITV News Presenter Julie Etchingham tweets: Some of Norway's brightest and best - young people engaged in politics and the future of their country - now lost. Heartbreaking tragedy.

1259: King Harald V and Queen Sonja are visiting the survivors of the Utoeya massacre at Sundvollen.

1302: China's premier, Wen Jiabao, offers his condolences to Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg over Friday's attacks. Mr Wen condemned the attacks and extended his condolences and "deep sympathy" to their families.

1307: BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner says on Radio 4 that Breivik's Facebook profile - which has now been removed - described him as a "Christian and a conservative" and was apparently harbouring a grudge against the ruling Labour government.

1311: PM Jens Stoltenberg gives a press conference at Sundvollen and says he has just spoken to many of the survivors. He said many of them had been "heroes" and had saved the lives of their friends. He said: "They are deeply affected and a lot of them said that the best way of honouring those who lost their lives is to carry on being active...and those who try to scare us will not succeed."

1314: Mr Stoltenberg thanks the world for its support and says: "We are very grateful for the strong support we have received from all of the world, from heads of state, they have phoned and sent messages and expressed their solidarity and offered assistance and they have said they feel Norway doesn't deserve this."

1315: Norway's national news agency says police are investigating if there was a second suspect involved in the shooting on Utoya.

Maria, Oslo writes: What needs to be the focus now is not this madman and his mad cause or he'll get exactly the attention that he wanted. What needs to be our focus is rebuilding our city and assisting those in need.

1326: Via Twitter @ZutPetje writes: shocking: #Oslo terrorist "claimed that Geert Wilders' Party for Freedom was the only "true" party of conservatives."

1337: Norway's former Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, now a UN Special Envoy on Climate Change, had left Utoeya only a few hours before the gun attack, it emerges.

1339: Charlotte, Copenhagen, Denmark writes: This tragedy reminds me of how important it is that we raise our children to respect other people's opinions. Not that I believe it will prevent all tragedies or extremist acts, but it will create a culture in which extremism has difficulty developing.

1346: Norway's PM Jens Stoltenberg says Norway is co-operating with foreign intelligence agencies after the attacks.

Eyewitness Adrian Pracon told the BBC of his harrowing ordeal on Utoya island where he faced the gunman: "He aimed his machine gun at me, I screamed".

1349: Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond extends Scotland's deepest condolences to the people of Norway in the wake of what he calls a "truly horrific and appalling tragedy".

"Scotland and Norway enjoy very strong bonds of friendship stretching back over many years, and our thoughts and sympathies are today with the Norwegian people, particularly the families of all those affected by these terrible incidents," he says.

1352: People gather outside Oslo Cathedral to mourn and show their respect for victims of the attacks.

1355: Norway's Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store tells the BBC the country will not allow itself to be changed by what has happened.

"The nature of the Norwegian democracy, what Norway stands for in the world, where we engage, where we commit our resources, and our connections, will not change. We will not offer that luxury to the person, and if there are more, who did this terrible act on our fellow citizens."

1359: PM Jens Stoltenberg says he has full confidence in the police and the investigation, and says the right thing to do is to wait for the results of the investigation before jumping to any conclusions.

Milo Jovich, Oslo, writes: It was terrible - I was walking about 8 blocks from the car bomb and heard a massive explosion. I saw this big puff of darkish smoke. I have never heard or seen anything like that in my whole life.

1406: Anders Behring Breivik, who has been charged with both attacks, describes himself as a Christian and conservative on a Facebook page attributed to him.

1408: A farm supply firm has confirmed selling six tonnes of fertiliser to Mr Breivik who is reported to have run a farming company. Speculation has been rife that fertiliser could have been used in the Oslo bomb.

Kenny Dalglish, Manager of Liverpool Football Club tweets: We will be wearing Black Arm bands today against Hull City as a mark of respect for the people of Norway.

1412: The BBC's World Affairs correspondent Richard Galpin says there are still a lot of parents who do not know if their children have survived the shootings in Utoya because they are still are missing.

1413: He says there is very tight security on the island at the moment.

The Independent's Jerome Taylor tweets: Norwegian flag is flying half mast at Ulleval Hospital where victims of the bomb and shooting have been taken

1419: Jon Sopel BBC News There is a heavy military presence in the centre of Oslo at the moment, with checkpoints in place.

1422: Jon Sopel BBC News It is very, very quiet in the city centre.

1424: Eyewitness Andreas Lunde tells the BBC he witnessed a "scene of destruction" when the bomb went off in Oslo yesterday.

"It's a small nation... it's a nation grieving," he says.

1433: Thomas Hylland Eriksen, a social anthropologist at Oslo University, says he thinks that maybe right-wing extremism in Norway is stronger and more dangerous than the country has been willing to admit.

1433: He says the attacks will inevitably lead to a slightly more paranoid society.

The New Statesman's Laurie Penny tweets: I don't understand all the Islamophobia and finger-pointing on my Twitter feed. Wasn't the attacker a Christian fundamentalist? Who does this help?

1443: Norway police say the death toll on the island of Utoya has risen from 84 to 85, Reuters reports.

1447: Norwegian police say there are no concrete reports of a second gunman on the island but they cannot rule out the possibility, Reuters says.

Dagfinn Paulsen in Sarpsborg, Norway, writes: Sarpsborg is a city situated 100km south of Oslo and despite this, that there are no cars or people in the streets. I have never seen this before. Norway is in shock today. Everybody is resting at home.

Mary Heywood from Dartmouth writes: Anders Breivik calls himself a Christian. How dare he, when 'Thou shalt not kill' is one of the Ten Commandments? This monster a Christian? I think not.

1452: Emergency personnel are scouring the water off the island of Utoya with boats and underwater cameras in a search for shooting victims.

1454: The camp was being attended by teenagers aged between 14 and 18.

1501: That means the total death toll from both the Norway attacks now stands at 92.

1502: Jon Sopel BBC News Flags are flying at half mast all across the city of Oslo.

1505: Earlier, Norwegian PM Jens Stoltenberg said his "childhood paradise" - Utoya - had been "transformed into Hell".

1507: Jane Owen, the British ambassador to Norway, tells the BBC there is a sense of shock and devastation in Oslo, where quite a large a proportion of the country live.

She says it brings home the threat of terrorism, from whatever quarter.

1510: Ms Owen says the extreme right have not had a huge profile in Norway and there is bound to be an investigation into the role they may have played.

1511: She says she has been struck by the fortitude and solidarity of the Norwegian people which will help them get through the coming days.

1513: There are no reports of British casualties, the British ambassador to Norway says. Ms Owen says British nationals are being urged to avoid central Oslo, but they are not advising against travel to Norway or Oslo.

Gary Brun from Kråkstad in Norway writes: My thoughts also go out to the paramedics, police, fireman and all those who are involved in the cleanup. We often forget them and the things they see and deal with.

Markku Niska tweets: 9/11 GW Bush: "We're gonna hunt you down!", 7/22 J Stoltenberg: "We will retaliate with more democracy, transparency and openness"

1525: Norwegian golfer Suzann Pettersen wears a black armband at the Evian Masters in memory of the victims of the twin attacks that have devastated her country.

1525: Ms Pettersen says she was deeply upset by Friday's bombing and shooting deaths, calling it "the biggest disaster in Norway's history" and "a very, very sad day".

1532: Survivors give their accounts of the terrifying attack on Utoya island to the BBC.

1535: For a more detailed breakdown of what happened when, read the BBC's timeline of the attacks.

1540: Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray sends a "message of support and solidarity" on behalf of the Scottish Labour Party to the Norwegian Labour Party.

"The loss of so many young lives is a tragedy, for their families of course, but also for the future of Norway and your Party."

1545: Mr Gray went on: "The willingness of each generation to engage in the politics of their nation and the wider world is such a fundamental foundation of our progressive democracies.

"To cut off so many lives inspired by the belief that together we can create a better world is not just an atrocity but an attempt to sabotage society itself. But it will fail."

Craig from Oslo writes: Just got back from the centre of Oslo. The atmosphere is tense, most of the shops are closed and around a quarter of the shopping area is closed off by police and the military. Helicopters are flying over the city on a regular basis and at 3pm local time, there was also a false bomb scare. It is absolutely shocking to see a normally peaceful city transformed into one of tension and concern.

1556: A bit of analysis now. Journalist Liss Goril Anda, in Stavanger, Norway, says the attacks strike at Norway's values. The BBC's Jorn Madslien asks whether the far right is not a spent force?

1559: Norway's Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere says Norway is united in deep mourning.

"I found people shocked, crying but at the same time there was a lot of caring. And people came together. Those who had found their loved ones alive stayed on for those who had not found their loved ones. Showing that kind of solidarity. It was a moment where the task was to be a human being and to be close to people and we'll do politics later."

Henrik Strand from Oslo tweets: Norway's PM Jens Stoltenberg had yesterday and today the hardest job in the world. He has done it the best way possible. What a leader

1608: German Chancellor Angela Merkel adds her voice to the condemnation.

She says the peace of a "democratic and open country" has been "torn apart by this hateful attack" and her thoughts are with the people in Norway who mourn the victims of an "appalling" crime.

1610: Ms Merkel blames the "hatred of the other" as the probable reason behind the deadly attacks and calls on the world to fight this "common enemy".

Dagmar Albrecht from Germany writes: I can't find any information on how it was possible that the guy was attacking people for so long and no one managed to stop him. If there were so many people, surely while he was reloading someone should have managed to somehow overwhelm him with a group?

1619: One of the survivors of Friday's Utoya Island shooting in Norway, Miriam Eimamgshaug, tells the BBC how frightened she was.

"I got scared, it's a lot to handle, but it's incredible to see how the young people here have been able to gather together.

"There's a lot of sadness, it is a really tragic situation, but people? It's always so good to see when people are still alive," she says.

1626: The arrested man Anders Behring Breivik was once a member of the right-wing Progress Party, Siv Jensen, leader of the party, confirms.

1631: "Earlier today, I was made aware that [Anders Behring Breivik] has earlier been a member of the youth organization of the People's Progressive Party, and that he cancelled his membership several years ago.

"Other than that we know very little about this person, he didn't draw much attention to himself, as long as he was with us," Siv Jensen says.

1633: King Harald V tells Norwegians: "It's now important that we stand together and we support each other and we do not let fear conquer us."

1634: One youth leader who was on the island, Lisa Marie Husby, tells the BBC she managed to get herself and some youngsters to safety by taking refuge in a cabin. But she says there were a few people who tragically decided not to follow her.

"Everybody that I took with me was safe. But three of them changed their minds on their way and ran back to the main building and they're missing now. I haven't seen them and I haven't heard from them."

1641: Robin Simcox, from the Henry Jackson Society, says the attacks mark the "end of naivety" for Norway.

1642: He says he thinks Norway will soon see policies to reflect this.

1643: News agency NTB says police are evacuating an area in Oslo near the site of Friday's explosion, AP reports.

1654: A Europol spokesman tells AP the European police agency is setting up a task force of more than 50 experts to help northern European countries investigate terrorism in the wake of the deadly attacks in Norway.

1655: Spokesman Soeren Pedersen says the group, which is based in The Hague, will help in investigations in the coming weeks.

He says right-wing groups "are getting more profesisonal, more aggressive in the way they attract others to their cause".

1705: Jan Egeland, director of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs and the former UN undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, tells BBC World Service: "It's nearing 100 killed altogether, in a population of less than five million people; it must be - proportionally - the worst act of terror in any Western country in this generation."

"There wouldn't be a single county that would not have been affected one way or the other."

You can get more on the story on Newshour at 2000 GMT.

1707: Norwegian police say the shooting on the island of Utoya say the shooting lasted almost 90 minutes.

1710: Norwegian police are giving a press conference. A police chief says the investigation is focusing on whether there was more than one gunman.

1711: Police say based on the statements from witnesses, they think there may have been more than one gunman.

1712: Police say the explosion in central Oslo was a car bomb.

1713: "It was a very powerful bomb, and it was in a car. The car didn't stand there for very long. We have taken possession of the car that he used from Oslo to Utoya."

1713: Norweigan police say there are still undetonated explosives around government buildings in Oslo.

1716: Police say buildings in the city centre are very fragile, and it is dangerous to search. Some bodies still remain in the building.

1716: "It is very difficult to say if [the gunman] was working alone or was part of a network."

1717: Police say there will be no names of the victims today.

1719: Referring to a search near the site of the bomb in Oslo today, police say there had a tip off about a further possible bomb, but they did not find anything.

1723: Norwegian police also say taking account of a few missing people, the toll could reach 98.

1725: That's because four or five people are still missing from the island of Utoya, police say.

1727: Another thing to come out of that police press conference. The suspect in the Norway shooting has admitted firing weapons on the island, police say.

1733: King Harald of Norway gives a news conference. He says: "We are being tested. We stand firm in our values."