Three brothers were arrested Wednesday in a weekend bombing at the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, which Norwegian police are treating as a possible act of terrorism.
Authorities said the men, who have not been publicly identified, are Norwegian citizens “with a background from Iraq.” They are all in their 20s.
Officials earlier said Sunday’s explosion caused limited damage to the structure and no injuries. Prime Minister Jonas Store called the attack “very serious and completely unacceptable.”
Investigators said they have not determined a motive but had not ruled out terrorism.
“It’s natural to see this in the context of the current security situation and that this could be an attack deliberately targeting the U.S. Embassy,” Oslo police official Frode Larsen said shortly after the explosion, referring to the U.S.-Israel war with Iran.
U.S. embassies and consulates around the world, particularly in Gulf countries caught in the crossfire, have been on high alert since the war with Iran began Feb. 28. The U.S. ordered the departure of nonemergency government personnel and families from missions in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Iraq and Oman. Suspected Iranian drones struck the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. Consulate in Dubai last week. The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad was also targeted in a rocket attack Saturday.
Shortly after the bombing in Oslo, shots were fired at the exterior of the U.S. Consulate in Toronto, Canada, on Tuesday.
The State Department did not immediately respond to MS NOW’s request for comment on the Oslo arrests.
Erum Salam is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian.