Three Norwegian brothers detained for Oslo US embassy blast

Three brothers from Norway were detained on allegations of a “terrorist bombing” at the U.S. embassy in Oslo, which caused slight damage over the weekend but no casualties.

Prosecutor Christian Hatlo announced at a press briefing that the siblings, Norwegian nationals of Iraqi descent, had been officially taken into custody in Oslo and that authorities were probing the motive.

Hatlo remarked: “We are still examining several possible explanations. One scenario involves an order from a state actor, which would be clearly understandable given the target – the U.S. embassy – and the current global security climate.”

He further noted that the inquiry will aim to determine precisely what part each brother, both in their twenties and previously unknown to law enforcement, played in the incident.

“We think one of them placed the explosive outside the embassy while the other two assisted in some capacity,” Hatlo told journalists, adding that police have not dismissed possible connections to “criminal networks” at this stage.

Norway’s security agency PST indicated in its recent threat report that Iran, viewed as a principal danger to the country, might employ proxy groups, including criminal networks, potentially to carry out such attacks in the near future.

The explosion occurred at about 1:00 a.m. local time on Sunday, striking the entrance to the embassy’s consular section.