Norwegian citizens linked to terror investigations in Norway and Germany

Two Norwegian citizens have been identified as ‘Hamas operators’ in a German indictment involving planned attacks on Jewish targets in Berlin or Vienna. While the individuals are listed as witnesses in the German case, the Norwegian Police Security Service (PST) has charged them with complicity in terror planning and weapons deliveries. Both men, who were detained in Western Norway in May, deny all wrongdoing.

In a separate legal proceeding at the Borgarting Court of Appeal, prosecutors are seeking 30 years of preventive detention for Arfan Qadeer Bhatti. Bhatti is accused of complicity in the June 2022 terror attack in Oslo, which occurred during Oslo Pride and resulted in two deaths. His defense attorney, John Christian Elden, argued that the prosecution’s case relies on speculation rather than evidence, describing Bhatti as ‘Norway’s most pre-judged man’.

The 2022 Oslo attack, carried out by Zaniar Matapour, targeted the Per på Hjørnet bar and the London Pub, leaving nine others wounded.