Police investigate after explosion outside U.S. Embassy in Norway; no injuries reported
An explosion at one of the entrances to the U.S. Embassy in Norway's capital, Oslo, is under investigation, Norwegian police reported on Sunday. There were no casualties or injuries, and only minor damages at the building, they said in a statement to CBS News.
The explosion occurred around 1 a.m. local time, Oslo police said, adding that a "loud bang" was reported at the scene. Investigators had been examining the area while dogs, drones and helicopters were also involved in the search "for one or more potential perpetrators," according to police. They haven't identified any suspects so far, police said at a news conference.
Frode Larsen, head of the Oslo police investigation unit, told reporters at a news conference that it may have been a deliberate attack linked to the crisis in the Middle East, Reuters reported.
"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," Larsen said.
Larsen later told public broadcaster NRK that "one of our hypotheses is that this is terrorism, but we are also exploring other options."
Police incident commander Michael Dellemyr told NRK that the blast hit the entrance of the embassy's consular section.
Dellemyr told Oslo's TV2 police would "not comment on anything related to the type of damage, what it is that has exploded and similar details, beyond the fact that there has been an explosion" because "it is very early in the investigation."
The blast may have been a deliberate attack, with Dellemyr telling TV2 that investigators "have an idea of the cause," and the incident appeared to be "an act carried out by someone." Police said they were reinforcing security measures in Oslo and increased their presence around the U.S. Embassy. They said police were specifically upping security measures to protect the Iranian diaspora and Jewish communities in Norway.
Dellemyr said investigators were talking to witnesses, and TV2 reported that a bomb squad was at the scene.
Police have determined that the scene and the surrounding area were safe, both for investigators and residents. They said there were no indications of a lingering threat.
CBS News has reached out to the State Department for comment.
Rep. Rick Crawford, chair of the House Intel Committee, told Fox News on Sunday that he believes the explosion at the embassy "may have been a terrorist attack."
"We need to be very diligent about not only our security here at home, but obviously targets around world where there are U.S. assets including embassies and so on," he said.
Residents near the embassy said they heard a loud blast. A 16-year-old identified only as Edvard told TV2 that he was watching television when he heard it.
"My mother and I first thought it came from our house so we looked around a little, but then we saw the flashing lights outside the window and a ton of police," he said. "…There were police dogs and drones and police with automatic weapons and helicopters in the air."
U.S. embassies have been placed on high alert in the Middle East over U.S. military operations in Iran, and several have faced attacks as Tehran hits back at industrial and diplomatic targets.