# 22 July 2011: the terror attack that changed Norway

What happened on 22 July 2011, how Norway responded, and where you can learn more today – including the memorial that opened in July 2026.

Canonical: https://samfunnprep.no/en/articles/22-juli-2011-terrorangrepet
Language: en
Publisher: SamfunnPrep
Author: Hlib Suslov
Published: 2026-07-30T09:17:30.562+00:00
Modified: 2026-10-27T12:47:11.431924+00:00
AI use policy: https://samfunnprep.no/ai-policy.txt

## Key takeaways

- 77 killed, 33 under 18 On 22 July 2011, 8 people were killed by a bomb at Regjeringskvartalet and 69 at AUF's summer camp on Utøya.
- The answer was more democracy Norway responded with open trials and public investigation of its own failures, not with a state of emergency or restricted free speech.
- PST: the threat is there in 2026 The National Threat Assessment 2026 says that a far-right terror attack in Norway is possible, and that minors are increasingly involved.

On 22 July 2011, 77 people were killed in two terror attacks in Norway: a car bomb at Regjeringskvartalet in Oslo and a shooting at the summer camp of the youth party AUF (Arbeidernes Ungdomsfylking) on Utøya. It was the worst attack in Norway since World War II.

The attack was politically motivated and aimed at immigration and Islam. Therefore, this is a story that concerns you as someone new to Norway, not just Norwegians who remember that day. Here are the facts, what the government did afterwards, and where you can learn more today. The date is also part of the curriculum for the society test in the topic [exams and tests](https://samfunnprep.no/en/samfunnskunnskapsproven).

## What happened on 22 July 2011?

Two attacks were carried out by the same person on the same afternoon.

At 15:25, a car bomb exploded outside Høyblokka at **Regjeringskvartalet** in Oslo. **8 people were killed**, and 10 were admitted to hospital with life-threatening or serious injuries.

About an hour and a half later, the attacker arrived at **Utøya** in Tyrifjorden, dressed as a police officer. The island was hosting the summer camp of AUF, the youth organization of Arbeiderpartiet. **564 people were on the island.** The shooting began shortly after 17:00, and the attacker was arrested at 18:34 – after just over an hour. **69 people were killed** on the island or in the water around it, and 33 suffered life-threatening or serious injuries.

**33 of those killed were under 18. The two youngest were 14 years old.**

## Who did it and why?

The attacker was a Norwegian man, Anders Behring Breivik, who acted alone. The motive was far-right extremist ideology: he believed that immigration, especially Muslim immigration, was destroying Norway, and that Arbeiderpartiet was to blame. Therefore, he attacked the government and the party's youth camp.

Oslo District Court sentenced him on 24 August 2012 to **21 years preventive detention with a minimum period of 10 years**. Preventive detention is not the same as ordinary prison: the sentence can be extended by five years at a time as long as the court considers there is a risk of reoffending, effectively indefinitely. He has been denied parole twice, most recently in December 2024, and is still serving his sentence in 2026.

## How Norway responded

The government's response was not a state of emergency or stricter laws against free speech. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said in his speech that evening: "The answer to violence is even more democracy. Even more humanity. But never naivety."

Three days later, on 25 July 2011, **approximately 200,000 people** gathered in Oslo city centre with roses. The actual march had to be cancelled because so many people came that they could not walk – they had to stand. That same evening, there were vigils throughout the country, including around 75,000 in Stavanger.

## The Gjørv Commission: what went wrong

The government established an independent investigative commission on 12 August 2011, led by lawyer Alexandra Bech Gjørv. The report (**NOU 2012:14** – NOU stands for Norges offentlige utredninger) was released on 13 August 2012 and was critical of the authorities:

- The attack on Regjeringskvartalet "could have been prevented through effective implementation of security measures already decided". So the measures had been decided, but not implemented.
- "A faster police response was actually possible. The attacker could have been stopped earlier."
- The criticism was not about money or equipment, but about leadership, coordination and culture. Gjørv's own summary became a phrase in Norwegian public discourse: **"The resources did not find each other."**

The commission also praised the healthcare workers and rescue efforts. Civilian boat owners on Tyrifjorden went out and pulled young people out of the water before the police arrived.

The most important concrete result is **The National Police Emergency Centre** at Taraldrud outside Oslo, which was put into use on 15 December 2020 and officially opened on 31 May 2021. There, the emergency response unit, bomb disposal, hostage negotiators and police helicopters are located in one place.

## Memorials: where you can learn more

Three sites are open to the public, and you need no prior knowledge to visit them:

- **22. juli-senteret**, Akersgata 42 in Oslo, is a national memorial and learning centre with **free admission**. A new permanent exhibition opened on 22 July 2026, and the centre also has a separate exhibition about radicalization until 1 March 2027.
- **The National Memorial at Utøyakaia** in Hole municipality opened on 18 June 2022. It consists of 77 slender bronze columns, one for each person killed, with their name engraved.
- **The national memorial at Regjeringskvartalet**, "En opprettholdelse" by artist Matias Faldbakken, opened on **19 July 2026**. The names and ages of all 77 are cut into the steel, with openings where people can leave flowers. Around 2,000 survivors, bereaved people and young people laid the final mosaic stones themselves in spring 2026.

## Why this matters to you today

The ideology behind the attack did not disappear in 2011. The Police Security Service (PST) released the **National Threat Assessment 2026** on 6 February 2026. It states that it is "possible that far-right extremists will attempt to carry out terror attacks in Norway in 2026". The PST also describes whom the enemy image targets: Jews, Muslims, people of non-Western appearance, authorities, politicians, LGBTQ+ people and the left.

Two findings from the same assessment are worth knowing if you have children or young people in your home: minors were involved in almost **50 per cent** of completed and prevented attacks in 2025, compared to around 20 per cent in previous years, and the PST points to gaming platforms like Roblox and Minecraft as arenas for radicalization.

You are also protected by law. **Criminal Code § 185** on hate speech sets punishment of a fine or imprisonment up to 3 years for public statements that threaten, ridicule or incite hate against someone. The protection covers skin colour, national or ethnic origin, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, and disability. The use of symbols also counts as a statement. Hate speech and hate crimes should be reported to the police.

The way Norway responded – with open trials, public investigation of its own failures and still low security barriers around politicians – says much about how the country is run. Learn more about [how democracy in Norway works](https://samfunnprep.no/en/articles/slik-fungerer-demokratiet-norge) and about [how you can participate in democracy](https://samfunnprep.no/en/articles/demokratisk-deltakelse-norge). The date is also in SamfunnPrep's [overview of important dates in Norwegian history](https://samfunnprep.no/en/articles/viktige-datoer-norges-historie).

Ready to practise? [Try SamfunnPrep for free](https://samfunnprep.no/register).

## FAQ

### What happened on 22 July 2011?

A Norwegian far-right extremist detonated a car bomb at Regjeringskvartalet in Oslo at 15:25 and then shot participants at AUF's summer camp on Utøya. In total, 77 people were killed.

### How many people were killed on Utøya?

69 people were killed on Utøya or in the water around the island, and 8 were killed by the bomb in Oslo. 33 of the 77 killed were under 18, and the two youngest were 14.

### What was the motive behind the attack?

The attacker had far-right extremist ideology and believed that immigration, particularly Muslim immigration, was destroying Norway. He targeted Arbeiderpartiet, which he blamed for this.

### What did the Gjørv Commission conclude?

That the attack on Regjeringskvartalet could have been prevented with security measures already decided, and that the attacker could have been stopped earlier at Utøya. The criticism was about leadership and culture, not lack of money.

### Where can I learn more about 22 July?

The 22. juli-senteret at Akersgata 42 in Oslo has free admission and opened a new permanent exhibition on 22 July 2026. There are also memorials at Utøyakaia and at Regjeringskvartalet.

### Is far-right extremism still a threat in Norway?

Yes. In the National Threat Assessment 2026, the Police Security Service (PST) writes that it is possible that far-right extremists will attempt to carry out terror attacks in Norway in 2026.

## Sources

- [Terrorangrepene i Norge 22. juli 2011](https://snl.no/terrorangrepene_i_Norge_22._juli_2011)
- [Massedrapet på Utøya](https://snl.no/Massedrapet_p%C3%A5_Ut%C3%B8ya)
- [22. juli-kommisjonen](https://snl.no/22._juli-kommisjonen)
- [Jens Stoltenbergs tale fredag kveld 22. juli 2011](https://www.arbeiderpartiet.no/om/historien-om-arbeiderpartiet/22-juli/jens-stoltenbergs-tale-fredag-kveld-22-juli-2011/)
- [22. juli-senteret – et nasjonalt minne- og læringssenter](https://www.22julisenteret.no/)
- [Nasjonalt minnested etter 22. juli i det nye regjeringskvartalet](https://koro.no/prosjekter/nasjonalt-minnested-etter-22-juli-i-det-nye-regjeringskvartalet/)
- [Nasjonal trusselvurdering 2026](https://www.pst.no/trusselbilde/norsk-trusselvurdering/nasjonal-trusselvurdering-2026/)
- [Lov om straff (straffeloven) § 185](https://lovdata.no/lov/2005-05-20-28/§185)

Citation: Hlib Suslov, "22 July 2011: the terror attack that changed Norway", SamfunnPrep, 2026-07-30T09:17:30.562+00:00, https://samfunnprep.no/en/articles/22-juli-2011-terrorangrepet