July 29, 2022
An Iranian-Norwegian immigrant went on a shooting spree in downtown Oslo June 25, killing two Norwegians and injuring 14.
The rampage started outside the London Pub, a well-known gay bar and nightclub and came just before the city’s LGBTQ+ community was due to celebrate its annual Pride parade, leading to suspicions that anti-gay hostility may have prompted the attack. However, police have not yet attributed any motive to the shooting.
The 42-year-old suspect was identified as Zanyar Matapour, an ethnic Kurd born in Iran who arrived in Norway with his family in the 1990s. He was detained minutes after the attack, according to police, who said they believed he acted alone. Two weapons, a pistol and a fully automatic rifle, were retrieved from the crime scene. Police said both weapons were “not modern.”
Police said the man was charged with murder, attempted murder and terrorist acts.
Roger Berg, acting chief of the Norwegian Police Security Service, said his agency first became aware of the man in 2025 and later became concerned because he had become radicalized and was part of an Islamist network, that he did not name.
Berg said his agents had spoken to the man just weeks before in May “because he had shown a certain interest in statements that were interpreted as insults to Islam. In these conversations, it was assessed that he had no intention of violence,” Berg said, adding that the agency knew he had mental health issues.
Olav Roenneberg, a journalist from Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, said he witnessed the shooting.
“I saw a man arrive at the site with a bag. He picked up a weapon and started shooting,” Roenneberg told NRK. “First, I thought it was an air gun. Then the glass of the bar next door was shattered and I understood I had to run for cover.”
Police inspector Tore Soldal said two of the shooting victims died—both men, one in his 50s and the other in his 60s. Ten of the 14 wounded were being treated for serious injuries, but none of them was believed to be life-threatening.
Investigators said the suspect was known to police, as well as to Norway’s security police, but not for any major violent crimes. His criminal record included a narcotics offense and a weapons offense for carrying a knife, police officer Christian Hatlo said.
Norwegian media outlets reported that Matapour was in close contact with an Islamic extremist living in Norway whom Norwegian police had been aware of for a long time. The extremist, identified as Arfan Bhatti, was known partly for his strong anti-gay views, Norwegian public broadcaster NRK said.
Matapour’s defense lawyer, John Christian Elden, who previously represented Bhatti, said his client has not given any explanation for his actions.
“It is very unclear if there is any motive,” Elden told Norwegian newspaper VG. “It also means that one should be very careful to speculate on the reasons why this [shooting] happened.”
Matapour’s questioning by police was cut short after he refused to have his statement recorded and videotaped, which is standard police practice. He fears police would edit the recordings and manipulate his words against him, Elden said.
“So far, police have insisted on recording the interrogation on audio and video,” Elden said. “My client has refused to be taken on audio and video, unless this was to be released publicly in its entirety.”
As of the Iran Times press deadline four weeks after the shooting, Matapour was still refusing to be interviewed.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere addressed Norway’s Muslim community during his speech at a memorial service for the dead. “I know how many of you felt when it turned out that the perpetrator belonged to the Islamic community. Many of you experienced fear and unrest. You should know this: We stand together, we are one community and we are responsible for the community together.”
Like its Scandinavian neighbors, Norway is considered progressive on LGBTQ rights. There is widespread support for same-sex marriage, which was legalized in 2009. In 2016, Norway became one of the world’s first countries to allow transgender people to legally change their gender without a doctor’s agreement or intervention.
Norway has a relatively low crime rate but has experienced a series of so-called lone wolf attacks in recent decades, including one of the worst mass shootings in the world. In 2011, a right-wing extremist killed 69 people on the island of Utoya after setting off a bomb in Oslo that left eight dead.
In 2019, another right-wing extremist killed his stepsister and then opened fire in a mosque but was overpowered before anyone there was injured.
Last year, a Norwegian man armed with knives and a bow and arrow killed five people in a town in southern Norway. The attacker, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia, was sentenced hours before the latest shooting to compulsory psychiatric care.
