Norway killings: search for bodies continues as first victims named

Police boats search fjord around Utøya island as man charged for allegedly selling chemicals used in Oslo bomb Investigators are still searching for bodies the fjord surrounding the island where Anders Behring Breivik killed 68 out of his 76 victims last week. Police have so far released the names of 13 people who died in the twin atrocities. Sharidyn Svebakk-Bohn celebrated her 14th birthday five days before she was killed at the Labour party youth convention on Utøya, and is the youngest. The teenager was well known in her town of Drammen in east Norway: aged 12 she featured in the local newspaper when she wrote a letter to the mayor demanding a children’s summer camp not be shut. Another 14-year-old is still listed as missing. Johannes Buo was a football and judo enthusiast from Mandal, a fishing town on the south coast. As investigators continued their inquiry, a Pole was charged with “crimes against public safety” for allegedly selling the chemicals which Breivik used to make the bomb he planted in Oslo’s government district, killing eight people. Police sources suggest that by Wednesday afternoon only one person remained unaccounted for, though a full list would only be released once all identities had been confirmed and their families informed. Two boats and a miniature submarine searched the water surrounding Utøya through the day. The island remained cordoned off as a search continued in the woods and along the shoreline. The police commander in charge of the operation to evacuate the island following the attack described how Breivik surrendered with his hands in the air and his guns on the ground when armed counter terrorism officers surrounded him on Friday. They had been directed towards the south side by terrified teenagers who had evaded his 90 minutes of gunfire. “When we got 350 metres away, we used our voices to call to him. The terrain was very difficult and it was hard to get clear visibility,” said Havard Gasbakk. “Suddenly the gunman was in front of us with his hands above his head.” After police apprehended Breivik “in the usual way”, Gasbakk’s task was to see if there were other gunmen on the island. “I had to see if there was anybody else shooting,” he said at a press conference. Having established Breivik was acting alone, Gasbakk co-ordinated the rescue operation, which saw hundreds of young people from Utøya brought safely to shore. Some were fished out of the water with the help of holidaymakers from the campsite opposite who used their own boats; others were coaxed out of their hiding places on the island. Many did not believe the police officers were genuine because Breivik had been wearing what appeared a police uniform. Then the first aid effort began. “The victims just came like on a conveyor belt,” said Gasbakk. The injuries were so severe that rescuers had to change their surgical gloves “very fast”, he added. Aware of the criticism levelled at police and emergency services for taking an hour and a half to reach the island, Gasbakk said he was “proud and humbled” at how his team had responded; he himself had been on his day off when the alarm came. But Sissel Hammer, chief of police of Nordre Buskerud district, where Utøya is located, said there would be an inquiry into how her officers had dealt with the incident. The prime minister, Jens Stoltenberg, announced an independent investigation into the two attacks, which would report directly to him. Called the July 22 Commission, it will examine whether more could have been done both to prevent the attacks and respond to them, he said. He also announced that the government would pay for the funerals of all victims, as well as legal bills incurred by any survivors. At a press conference at his Oslo residence, Stoltenberg underlined his commitment to openness, defending freedom of thought, even if includes extremist views such as those held by the 32-year-old who confessed to Friday’s bomb blast and to the shooting massacre. “We have to be very clear to distinguish between extreme views, opinions that are completely legal, legitimate to have, [and] what is not legitimate is to try to implement those extreme views by using violence,” he said. “I think what we have seen is that there is going to be one Norway before and one Norway after 22 July,” he said. “But I hope and also believe that the Norway we will see after will be more open, a more tolerant society than what we had before.” He said the Labour party, including survivors of the massacre, were determined to reopen Utøya as a retreat in the future. He himself had visited the island every summer since 1974, he said. Hadia Tajik, 28-year-old Muslim Labour party MP, said: “We want to reclaim the island. It is associated with sadness, but we want it to become a paradise again.” Norway Anders Behring Breivik Europe Helen Pidd guardian.co.uk

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