Advertisement

Security cops investigate Islamist threat video

NTB/The Local
NTB/The Local - [email protected]
Security cops investigate Islamist threat video
Photo: YouTube Screenshot

On the same day Norway’s intelligence service (PST) said hardline Islamists remained the foremost threat to national security, leading government officials and the royal family have been singled out in a threatening online video.

Advertisement

In a Twitter message, PST said it would seek to ascertain if the video, posted on YouTube and linked to from a Facebook group, constituted incitement to commit acts of terrorism.

A link to the video was posted in the early hours of Tuesday morning in a Facebook group with 1,600 members called ‘Demonstrasjon: Norske soldater ut av Afghanistan’ [Demonstration: Norwegian soldiers out of Afghanistan]. The group’s aim is to gather protesters for a rally outside the Oslo parliament this Friday.

In the video, images of Crown Prince Haakon, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre are accompanied by a song in Arabic that contains the words: “Oh Allah, destroy them, and let it be painful”.

The clip, which is just over four minutes long, also features pictures of Norwegian soldiers and injured children. It ends with the sound of an explosion and a picture of a Norwegian vehicle in flames.

The Facebook group includes several well-known Norwegians from different walks of life, such as stand-up comedian and columnist Rehman Gaarder, Labour Party MP Saera Khan, and one-time terror suspect Arfan Bhatti.

Police investigator Snorre Haugan said there were no plans to revoke a permit for the protest on Friday, which is being organized by Muslimer mot okkupasjon [Muslims against occupation].

“No, that’s not the right way to go at all. It’s hard to hold organizers responsible for postings on Facebook pages. We trust that the organizers will respect freedom of speech like everyone else,” Haugan said.

He added, however, that police were aware of the extreme views being expressed on various social media by some supporters of the planned demonstration.

More

Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.

Please log in to leave a comment.

See Also