IN MEMORIAM

Tragedy struck the people of my beloved Oslo, and the whole of Norway when right wing extremist Anders Behring Breivik detonated explosives in the nation's political headquarters in Oslo on the 22nd of July 2011. This, however, was just the start of what would be the most tragic day in the history of this wonderful, peace-loving country since the Second World War.

The explosion was merely a decoy: with the media attention and the majority of the police force diverted, Breivik proceeded with the main part of his plan: assault the Labor Party's youth assembly in the island of Utøya, a few miles outside of Oslo. Dressed in police uniform, he gathered most of the people (mostly in their teens and early 20's) and opened fire. Some of the victims, even those who were injured, attempted to swim to safety in desperation. Almost 700 people were attending that assembly. At the time of this writing, 85 have been confirmed dead. The explosion in Oslo has so far claimed seven lives.

The people of Norway, myself included, are still in shock. It has hard to fathom how one man can harbor so much hate that he would go to such drastic measures.

The tragic events that transpired in Oslo and Utøya on the fateful day of July 22, 2011 will forever remain in the hearts and minds of everyone. My beloved city has taken a beating, its citizens shaken. But the values and principles that we Norwegians stand for: peace, equality and diversity, remain unscathed despite this tragedy. I dedicate this to the victims and their bereaved. You have not died in vain.