Norwegian Blamed for Deadly Twin Attacks

 　　The normally peaceful Nordic nation of Norway was rocked Friday by twin attacks that left a number of people dead.

　　A mid-afternoon bombing that targeted the country's government headquarters in Oslo, Norway's capital, killed seven people.  Hours later a gunman dressed as a police officer opened fire at a youth camp on an island off Norway's west coast, north of Oslo.  Officials say at least 10 people were killed there with the death toll¹ expected to rise.

　　Most of the victims were children.

　　Norway's Justice Minister, Knut Storberget, told reporters that the man who carried out the attack on the island of Utoya is Norwegian and that he is now in custody².  Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg also addressed reporters.  He said what he called the "cowardly attack" will not destroy Norway's democracy or its "commitment to a better world."

　　Friday's assault was the most violence Norway has witnessed since World War II.

　　There has been no clear claim of responsibility, or a motive³, for the attacks.  But Norwegian officials have suggested they are connected.

　　The building that was bombed in Oslo houses the office of the prime minister but he was not there at the time and was not harmed.

　　U.S. President Barack Obama was quick to condemn⁴ the attacks and express his condolences for the loss of life.  He  said the entire international community has a stake in preventing what he called "this kind of terror from occurring."

　　U.N. Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon, through his spokesman, expressed his shock over learning about the attacks and said the United Nations stands with the people of Norway "at this terrible moment."

　　The bombing in Oslo shattered hundreds of windows in the 17-story government headquarters building.  Windows  in buildings as far as 400 meters away were also destroyed.  The blast sent people running through the streets in the normally quiet neighborhood which were littered with debris⁵.

1 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

2 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

3 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

4 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

5 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。