Thanks Haruna and Suntou...This writer speaks for me as well because this tragedy is a crime against humanity and democracy...Perhaps is a wake up call for politicians in Norway and beyond to be responsible for what they preach... Niamorkono On Thu, Jul 28, 2011 at 8:40 PM, Haruna Darbo <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > That's right Nyamorkono, I forgot you were in Norway too. I'm glad you're > ok though and your family. > Best wishes. > Haruna. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Fye samateh <[log in to unmask]> > To: GAMBIA-L <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Thu, Jul 28, 2011 8:38 am > Subject: [G_L] Unanswered questions in Norway terror attack > > Unanswered questions in Norway terror attack By Susan Garth > 28 July 2011 > It is now almost a week since the fascist atrocity in Norway—the blowing up > of government offices in central Oslo, killing eight people, and the > cold-blooded murder of 68 young people on the nearby island of Otøya. > This terrorist attack, the most deadly in post-war Norwegian history, has > been consistently reported as the work of a crazed gunman who acted alone. > The media and politicians are working assiduously to obscure the political > motives of the killer, his connections to far-right and fascist > organizations, and the political and moral responsibility borne by > establishment parties and politicians in Europe and the US who have sought > to appropriate the anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim program of the extreme > right wing. > This is not an easy task, since the killer, Anders Behring Breivik, > announced to the world that he was setting out to destroy the Norwegian > Labour Party and kill as many of its officials and members as possible > because he associated the party with “Marxist multiculturalism.” In a > 1,500-page manifesto posted on the Internet only hours before the attack, > Breivik, the son of a former Norwegian diplomat, proclaimed his bloody act > to be part of a campaign to purge Muslim influence from Norway and defend > “Western civilization.” > His action, he explained, should signal the start of a European civil war > and serve as a rallying point for anti-Muslim fanatics. His lawyer, Geir > Lippestad said on Tuesday, “He believes this is the start of a war that will > go on for 60 years.” > In the rush by the media and political establishment to derail any serious > discussion or examination of the facts of the attack and its political > implications, a number of glaring anomalies and troubling questions are > being passed over in silence. > There is the fact that it took the police 90 minutes to arrive on Otøya, 25 > miles from Oslo, after they began receiving desperate telephone calls from > Labour Party youth reporting that scores of people were being executed by a > gunman. The official story is that no helicopters were available. > If that is true, it only demonstrates the fraud of the so-called “war on > terrorism.” Norway has sent troops to Afghanistan and is supporting the > US-NATO air war against Libya supposedly because such interventions are > necessary to protect the people of Norway and Europe as a whole from the > ever-present threat of terrorist attack. But an actual terrorist attack on > Norwegian soil—not by an Islamic extremist but by a native-born middle-class > Norwegian—immediately exposes the fact that no preparations have been made > to protect the population. > Why? Because the Norwegian ruling class and all of its parties—social > democratic as well as conservative—understand that the so-called “war on > terror” is an elaborate pretext for military aggression abroad on behalf of > the imperialist economic and geo-political interests of the financial elite, > and an assault on democratic rights at home to prepare for state repression > against working class opposition to austerity measures. It has nothing to do > with defending the people against external attack. > Far from offering a serious explanation for the delayed police response, > which gave Breivik all the time he needed he murder one youth after another > without hindrance, Justice Minister Knut Storberget on Tuesday praised the > “fantastic work” of the police. > “I would like to emphasize that the police have done a magnificent job and > I do not think it is appropriate to criticise the police,” he said when > journalists questioned him about the 90 minute delay. “It is important for > me to congratulate all policewomen and policemen working on the streets, as > well as all senior police officials,” Storberget insisted. > Nor was the performance of Norway’s Delta Force, presumably the first line > of defence against terrorist attacks, any better. The head of the force, > Anders Snortheimsmoen, said this week that it arrived at the same time as > the local police. > According to his lawyer, Breivik himself was surprised that he was able to > carry out the massacre on Otøya after exploding the bomb in Oslo. He > expected to be killed immediately after the Oslo bombing. The ease and speed > with which Breivik reached the island and put his terrorist plan into > operation stands in marked contrast to time it took the police to make the > same journey to apprehend him. > The delay in the police response is only one of many troubling unanswered > questions. It is widely reported that Breivik was wearing as police uniform. > How did he obtain it? > Early reports said that six people were arrested in Breivik’s apartment. > They were later said to have been released because they had no connection > with the case. But why were six people at the home of a man who has been > described as a loner? > Breivik initially claimed to be working alone, but he later said there were > two other terrorist cells in Norway, as well as others abroad. Norwegian > police have been quick to deny that Breivik had any accomplices. > Janne Kristiansen, head of domestic intelligence, said it was “highly > unlikely” that other cells existed, despite the fact that other security > agencies worldwide are searching for links to Breivik. On what facts or > evidence is Kristiansen’s conclusion based? The mainstream media do not > bother to even ask. > Evidence of Breivik’s links to right-wing organisations is mounting. The > English Defence League (EDL), which initially denied any connection with > him, has now back-tracked and is examining the possibility, after the > UK-based *Searchlight *magazine, which investigates right-wing groups, > published material indicating that contacts existed between the EDL and > Breivik. > If Breivik operated alone, it is difficult to explain how he assembled the > chemicals and weapons he needed for his attack. Norwegian police blew up > explosives at a farm rented by Breivik. They refused to say what quantity of > explosives was involved. Some reports have suggested that he had a total of > 6 tonnes of explosives sourced from different companies, some of them > outside Norway. > His purchases brought him to the attention of Norwegian customs, who > reported him to the security services. His name was on an Interpol and a > Norwegian watch list. How, then, was he able to proceed with impunity in > carrying out his murderous plan? > The attempt to separate the terrorist attack in Norway from the increasing > integration of fascistic tendencies into mainstream European bourgeois > politics pervades the media coverage and official commentary. Every effort > is being made to portray this politically motivated crime as an isolated > event that has no wider political significance. > Writing in the *Guardian*, British journalist Simon Jenkins declared: “The > Norwegian tragedy is just that, a tragedy. It does not signify anything and > should not be forced to do so. A man so insane he can see nothing wrong in > shooting dead 68 young people in cold blood is so exceptional as to be of > interest to criminology and brain science, but not to politics.” > Meanwhile, some spokesmen for right-wing parties that share government > power are defending the political outlook of Breivik. Interviewed on a > popular radio show, Francesco Speroni, a leading member of the Northern > League, the junior partner in Silvio Berlusconi's conservative coalition, > said, “Breivik’s ideas are in defence of Western civilization.” > Another Northern League politician, member of the European parliament Mario > Borghezio, told radio Il Sole-24 Ore that he sympathised with Breivik’s > ideas. “Some of the ideas he expressed are good, barring the violence. Some > of them are great,” Borghezio said. > Breivik is a former member of the Norwegian Progress Party, which calls for > tighter curbs on immigration. In 2009, Siv Jensen, leader of the party, > identified what she called “a kind of sneak-Islamisation of this society,” > for which she blamed the Labour Party. “We are going to have to stop this,” > she said. > Breivik reportedly left the Progress Party because he deemed it > insufficiently right-wing. > What has taken place in Norway is a fascist terror attack. Its immediate > target was the Norwegian Labour Party, but there should be no mistake that > the objective of the forces to which Breivik belongs is a war on the working > class. > The Norwegian Labour Party, like every other social democratic party, has > adapted its policies to the extreme right. The effect of last Friday’s > attack will be to drive it even further to the right, and other parties, > social democratic and otherwise, will follow suit. > The Norway terror attack is the outcome of a process in which fascistic > elements have been nurtured over many years and are now being brought into > official political life. The massacre exposes the putrefaction of the entire > political system in Europe and beyond. > Share this article: > > - Facebook<http://facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&t=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - Twitter<http://twitter.com/share?original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&text=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml> > - Digg<http://digg.com/submit?phase=2&bodytext=&tags=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&title=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - Reddit<http://reddit.com/submit?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&title=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - Delicious<http://delicious.com/post?v=2¬es=&tags=&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&title=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - StumbleUpon<http://stumbleupon.com/submit?url=http://www.wsws.org/articles/2011/jul2011/norw-j28.shtml&title=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - Blogger<http://blogger.com/blog_this.pyra?t&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&n=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > - E-Mail<http://www.wsws.org/tools/index.php?page=sendlink&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.wsws.org%2Farticles%2F2011%2Fjul2011%2Fnorw-j28.shtml&title=Unanswered%20questions%20in%20Norway%20terror%20attack> > > ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To > unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web > interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html > To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: > http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the > List Management, please send an e-mail to: > [log in to unmask]¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ > ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To > unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web > interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html > > To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: > http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the > List Management, please send an e-mail to: > [log in to unmask]¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ > ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤