Utøya - killing spree's sequence of events inscribed onto the island (Photo credit: quapan) |
Breivik's actions could help the current government, and in particular the Labour Party, analysts said.
"In the short term, the parties are not going to touch the immigration issue ... I think it's going to make politicians quite cautious in their wording, their rhetoric," said Hanne Marthe Narud, political science professor at Oslo University.
"In a time of tragedy, voters normally flock around the established parties, particularly those in office. The Labour Party has been particularly harmed by this, and the way the prime minister has acted is extremely good. His popularity will spill over to the Labour Party," she added.
Norway's Muslim leaders were hopeful for the future, seeing Breivik's violent call for Europe to shun Muslims as actually more likely to bring Muslims and Christians together.
"I think minorities will think of themselves as more Norwegian ... religion, ethnicity, color will go into the background. The Norwegian identity will be strengthened," said Mehtab Afsar, Islamic Council of Norway general-secretary.
"We are standing shoulder to shoulder with our Christian brothers and sisters in Norway," he added.
Breivik_GP3 (Photo credit: Uppdragsmedia) |
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2013 update:
Breivik, held in isolation in a high security prison near Oslo for killing 77 people in twin attacks in 2011, placed an application to create an association he wanted to call "The Norwegian fascist party and the Nordic league."
But Mette Siri Brønmo, a spokeswoman for the body that registers such applications, told the Aftenposten daily that Breivik's bid fell short of the legal requirements.
"To be an association, you need to have two people or more ... and in this case, there's only Breivik," she said.