July 22, 2011: the day hell descended on Norway

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Norway, known for its tolerance and high living standards, was brutally wrenched out of its serenity on July 22, 2011 by twin attacks that plunged the normally peacful nation into horror.

At 3:25 pm (1325 GMT), a massive blast shook the capital, jolting the country out of its drowsy midsummer stupor.

A small rental truck carrying some 950 kilos (over 2,000 pounds) of explosives made from fertiliser exploded at the foot of the prime minister's office building in Oslo's government district.

The bomber -- later identified as right-wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik -- had been held up in a traffic jam and was late setting off the explosion: many employees had already left their offices, eager to get a head-start on their weekend.

But the blast, which was so powerful it blew out windows for several blocks and was heard kilometres away, killed eight people and wounded dozens more.

Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg was working out of his official residence and not in the building at the time.

As Breivik sped off in an escape car, he learned from a radio report that he had failed to bring down the government tower as he had hoped.

His aim, he has said, was to stage such a spectacular attack that it would draw widespread attention to his 'manifesto', a 1,500-page document detailing his anti-Muslim ideology, which he posted online shortly before setting off the bomb.

With the government building still standing, the right-wing extremist set the second phase of his plan into action.

At around 5:15 pm, Breivik, disguised as a police officer and travelling on board the MS Thorbjoern ferry, arrived at Utoeya island, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) northwest of Oslo, where the ruling Labour Party's youth wing was hosting its annual summer camp.

---- The shooting begins ---

Breivik's first victims were Monica Boesei, 45, who had helped run the camp for two decades and was known as 'Mother Utoeya', and 51-year-old off-duty police officer Trond Berntsen.

Boesei had taken the ferry across the lake with the fake police officer, who had asked her to gather camp security so he could brief them on the Oslo bombing.

Berntsen, the stepbrother of Norway's Crown Princess Mette-Marit who was handling security for the camp, met them at the dock and had expressed suspicion before Breivik shot and killed the pair.

Armed with a Ruger rifle and a Glock pistol, both semi-automatic, he strode around the island looking for panicked young campers, trying to win their confidence by claiming to be a police officer there to protect and evacuate them.

At the top of a small steep hill, he entered the cafeteria, spraying it with bullets and leaving 13 bodies in his wake.

As he slowly followed the 'love trail' that circles the heart-shaped island, he killed 10 more people, and mowed down 14 others near the island water pump.

The massacre lasted more than an hour: 189 shell casings were later found. Trapped on the 26-acre (11-hectare) island, many of the mainly teenage campers threw themselves into the icy lake, desperately trying to swim to safety.

Alerted by the gunshots, people at a nearby campsite tried to come to the rescue by boat, only to find themselves ducking bullets as well.

"You will all die, Marxists!" yelled the killer, who was high on an illegal combination of ephedrine, caffeine and aspirin.

Twice he called police, introducing himself as "Breivik. Commander. Involved in the anti-communist resistance against Islamisation", and announcing: "Mission accomplished and I will surrender".

But the calls were quickly cut off and, each time, Breivik continued to methodically shoot at anyone he could spot, not hesitating to finish off the wounded.

Fifty-six of those killed were shot in the head, and many were shot numerous times, with as many as eight bullets pulled out of the body of an 18-year-old boy.

A special police unit made its way through congested Oslo traffic and took out a small motor boat to go to the island but it experienced engine failure and they were forced to commandeer two civilian boats.

Police finally arrested Breivik at 6:34 pm.

Out of the some 600 people on Utoeya that day, 67 were shot to death and two died from falls and drowning while trying to escape. Thirty-three others were wounded, many of them seriously.

Most of the victims were teenagers -- 56 of them were under the age of 20 and the youngest had just celebrated her 14th birthday five days earlier.

During his 10-week trial, which ended last month, Breivik confessed to carrying out the attacks but pleaded not guilty, insisting they were necessary in his fight against multiculturalism and a 'Muslim invasion' of Europe.

The verdict is due on August 24.