Attacks in Norway: More religious violence

Last Friday I wrote about two rabbis who believe it's okay to kill children if you believe they'll grow up to become people who will cause you harm.  On the same day, a Christian in Norway was doing exactly that.



In the US, the initial interpretation of the events in Norway was typical: this guy was a Muslim extremist, and we need to step up our anti-terrorism efforts against al Qaeda.  For example, Thomas Joscelyn wrote in The Weekly Standard:

Just one year ago, authorities in Oslo broke up an al Qaeda-directed bomb plot that originated in northern Pakistan. Good intelligence, including intercepted emails between an al Qaeda planner and the Oslo cell, prevented the plotters from assembling and launching their bomb.  [...]

Oslo was not as fortunate today. At least one bomb ripped through a government building where the prime minister normally works (he was working from home today) and several people were killed. Scores more were injured and multiple buildings sustained heavy damage. A gunman also opened fire at a youth camp, possibly killing many more. 

The victims of this terrorist attack are the first thing that comes to mind, of course. But the second, for me at least, was that foiled plot last year.

We don’t know if al Qaeda was directly responsible for today’s events, but in all likelihood the attack was launched by part of the jihadist hydra.

Jennifer Rubin of the Washington Post added:

Moreover, there is a specific jihadist connection here: “Just nine days ago, Norwegian authorities filed charges against Mullah Krekar, an infamous al Qaeda-affiliated terrorist who, with help from Osama bin Laden, founded Ansar al Islam – a branch of al Qaeda in northern Iraq – in late 2001.”

This is a sobering reminder for those who think it’s too expensive to wage a war against jihadists.

If anything, this is a sobering reminder of the idiocy of Thomas Joscelyn and Jennifer Rubin.

As it turns out, the suspect in custody for these attacks, Anders Behring Breivik, is a Christian fundamentalist who was worried about the "deconstruction of Norwegian culture and mass-import of Muslim."  He felt betrayed by the Labor Party, who he felt was recruiting Muslims into Norwegian culture.

So, when we thought the attacks were from Muslims, people were calling for increasing activity and funding in the "war on terror" against Muslim extremists.  Now that we know he's a right-wing Christian extremist, somehow I doubt that these same people will be calling for an equally stern response to all Christian extremists.

My point is NOT that we should target Christian extremists.  My point is NOT that all religious people are evil.  My point is that, once again, somebody has been motivated to commit atrocities on the basis of their religious beliefs.  Yes, Breivik's actions were directed to a political party, but the underlying cause was his hatred of Muslim immigrants to Norway, which he felt was being facilitated by the Labor party.  And his Christian values led him to believe that an appropriate response would be to blow up the Labor party offices and kill as many children and future leaders of the Labor party as possible.