Photo Gallery Twin Attacks in Norway
Norway has been hit by twin attacks which have left at least 16 people dead. A violent explosion in the capital Oslo was followed by a shooting incident at a youth camp on the island of Utoya.
Speaking after the blast, Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said the situation was "very serious."
At least seven people were killed and 15 injured in the blast in central Oslo.
Just a few hours after the explosion, it was reported that a shooting had taken place on the island of Utoya at a youth camp organized by the governing Labor Party.
Police confirmed on Friday evening that at least nine or 10 people had been killed in the shooting incident, with some witnesses putting the death toll as high as 20.
The twin attacks have shocked the normally peaceful Scandinavian country.
Government buildings were damaged in the explosion in central Oslo on Friday. The windows of this building were blown out.
The loud explosion shattered windows at the government headquarters in Oslo which includes the prime minister's office.
The streets were covered in debris following the explosion. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg was not in his office at the time of the blast.
Medics treat people at the scene of the blast.
Friday was a public holiday in Norway, meaning that there were fewer people in government offices than would normally have been the case.
The explosion happened at 3:26 p.m. local time.
The blast tore open several buildings.
An injured man is treated at the scene following the blast.
"It smells like sulphur," said one reporter from the newspaper Aftenposten who was at the scene.
Norway has faced several homegrown terror plots in recent years linked to al-Qaida.
There are over 400 Norwegian troops currently stationed in Afghanistan.
So far, no one has claimed responsibility for the attack.
Streets into the city center were closed off following the blast, local media reported.
"Oslo has never seen anything like this before," one local resident told the BBC.
World leaders have condemned the violence. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was "appalled" when she heard about the attack in Oslo.
Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Store told the BBC that the country was in "deep shock." He said that the government would have to relocate within Oslo because of the bombings, but insisted that Norway would not abandon its "core values of democracy."
