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Guard saw Anders Breivik's bomb explode, court hears

 

Ap
Tuesday 24 April 2012 14:16 BST
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Anders Breivik at his trial in Oslo today
Anders Breivik at his trial in Oslo today (Reuters)

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A security guard in the Norwegian government building struck by a car bomb that killed eight people, detonated by mass killer Anders Breivik, told a court today he had just put a security camera on the number plate when it exploded.

Tor Inge Kristoffersen described the scene in central Oslo as a "war zone" as he gave evidence in the trial of Breivik who has confessed to the bombing and a subsequent shooting massacre that left 69 dead at a political youth camp.

Mr Kristoffersen, who was working in the basement of the building, said he and a colleague used security cameras to get a closer look at the number plate so that they could find out more about the vehicle.

He says "the moment we had zoomed in on the plate the car exploded."

A police officer described the chaos that reigned in Oslo after the bomb exploded.

Tor Langli said the initial reports he received after the blast suggested there were two suspects, and two other bombs about to explode.

Mr Langli recalled standing next to the head of an anti-terror squad in Oslo when he received a call about the second attack at the Labor Party's youth camp on Utoya, 25 miles away.

"I saw on his face that it was something serious," Mr Langli said. "And while I was watching him he said out of the corner of his mouth: 'Shooting on Utoya."'

Another report came in that about 50 people had been shot on the island. The anti-terror unit was dispatched to Utoya. When it arrived, some 70 minutes after the first reports of Breivik's rampage, 100 youth had been shot.

Breivik has said the victims had betrayed Norway by embracing immigration.

The self-described militant nationalist claimed last week that he had expected to be shot by police after the bombing. But no one stopped him as he walked to a getaway car parked near the bomb site, and drove to Utoya.

Mr Langli said he first got a report of a suspect with a "non-Nordic" appearance leaving the scene. He then got another report of a Nordic-looking suspect, which made him believe there were two suspects.

When he heard about the Utoya shooting, he started thinking the bomb and the massacre were the actions of the same person.

"I thought there was a connection. But I didn't have any evidence for that," he said. Turning to Breivik, he added: "I could not imagine there being two people with so many crazy ideas."

Two psychiatric examinations conducted before the trial reached opposite conclusions on whether Breivik is psychotic - the key issue to be resolved during the trial.

Svein Olav Christensen, an explosives expert working for a defence agency, showed pictures of the bomb site to the court. The two ton fertiliser and diesel bomb had ripped holes in the concrete platform underneath the vehicle, and also in the subterranean floor below.

The trial is scheduled to go on for nine more weeks.

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