Norway Holds National Memorial for Victims

By Alex Johnston
August 21, 2011

Norway on Sunday held a national memorial for the 77 victims who died in the double terrorist attack last month, ending a month-long period of mourning.

Nearly 7,000 people including the Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, King Harald, and the presidents of Finland and Iceland as well as other political luminaries, attended the memorial at the Spektrum concert hall in Oslo, according to media reports.

Stoltenberg called on Norwegians to support the families of victims killed during the shooting on Utoya Island and the bombing in Oslo’s government district, which were allegedly carried out by Norwegian Anders Behring Breivik, a right-wing extremist.

“We must invite in those who have gone astray. We must oppose those who want to use violence," Stoltenberg said, according to a translation of his speech posted on the government’s website. “We must meet them with all the arms of democracy.”

Stoltenberg was widely praised for his handling of the aftermath of the incident, which is considered the worst non-wartime attacks in the country’s history. In his speech, the prime minister said that Norway needs to be alert to signs of extremism and create a culture of safety and kindness to prevent it.

Norway will “make an unbreakable chain of solidarity, democracy, safety and security,” he concluded. “That is our protection against violence.”

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/world/norway-holds-national-memorial-for-victims-60614.html.