Norway – A Norwegian court has upheld the life sentence of right-wing extremist Philip Manshaus, who carried out an armed attack on a mosque in Oslo in 2019. The attack injured several worshippers before they were able to subdue him and prevent him from committing a larger massacre.
The court clarified that the verdict is final and cannot be appealed, emphasizing that the motive for the crime was purely racist. The defendant was inspired by similar attacks in New Zealand and aimed to spread terror among Muslims in the country.
The attack on the Al-Noor Islamic Center in the suburb of Bærum shocked conservative Norwegian society, especially after investigations revealed that the perpetrator had killed his stepsister immediately before carrying out the attack, motivated by racism.
The Norwegian government pledged to continue combating hate speech and extremism online. It emphasized that such crimes will not be tolerated in Norwegian society, which prides itself on its diversity and freedom of belief.
