NordenBladet – Crown Prince Haakon of Norway is continuing his visit to the Pacific region. On Monday, he arrived in Fiji and was received in a traditional ceremony. The Crown Prince landed on Monday morning at Nausori airport outside Suva. There he inspected an honorary guard of the nation’s troops accompanied by the Chief of Defence, Viliame Naupoto.
The Crown Prince then travelled on to the capital Suva where he was welcomed in the traditional way, with flower wreaths and a cavalry ceremony. After the ceremony, the Crown Prince attended a meeting with President Jioji Konrote in his residence, Borron House. Co-operation between Norway and Fiji in matters of sea and climate were important topics in the conversation between the two.
Following the meeting with the president Crown Prince Haakon also met with Prime Minister Josaia Bainimarama, who also hosted a reception on the occasion of the visit. In his speech during the reception, the Crown Prince emphasized Fiji’s important leadership in ocean and climate issues and looked forward to further cooperation on these issues which are so central to both countries.
The Crown Prince said: ”It is a great pleasure for me and the entire delegation to be here in Fiji – to see your beautiful country, to listen and learn about your society and history. Thank you for the warm hospitality you have shown us”.
Crown Prince Haakon continued: “Fiji and Norway are far apart in geographical terms. We come from the cold north of Europe. Here in the South Pacific we have been given a very warm welcome – and we feel that we are among friends with shared interests. Our countries may be small in terms of land mass, but we are both large ocean states. The oceans are essential to our livelihoods and history. The oceans connect us”.
Crown Prince Haakon will continue his visit on Fiji on Tuesday. This royal visit is taking in the nations of Tonga, Fiji and Samoa between 5 April and 11 April. The purpose of the visit is to strengthen partnerships with small island states in the South Pacific for the promotion of common interests including seas and climate, peace and security. Royal Central will follow the visit closely and bring you the latest news from Crown Prince Haakon’s tour.
Featured image: Crown Prince Haakon meeting President Jioji Konrote. The president handed over a boat model to the Crown Prince. (Photo: Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen, The Royal Court)
NordenBladet – On Friday, Crown Prince Haakon of Norway began his visit to the Pacific region. His first stop was Tonga where he was warmly welcomed by King Tupou. During the weekend His Royal Highness has highlighted climate change in Tonga.
On Saturday, Crown Prince Haakon and Norway’s Development Minister, Dag-Inge Ulstein, saw the effects of climate change on Tongatapu up close. When the glaciers in the north and south melt, the sea rises far more here than in other parts of the world. The Crown Prince also visited Tonga’s Deputy Prime Minister, Semisi Sika, on Saturday. Common challenges with climate and ocean health were topics in the conversation between the two.
Crown Prince Haakon met some of the worried villagers at ‘Ahau Beach and Kolovai Beach. They told the royal about the sea that slowly rises and penetrates into their gardens. At ‘Ahau, residents have begun planting mangroves to protect the coastline. The mangroves thrive with plenty of water, and their root system helps to bind and stabilize the soil.
Climate change is something the Crown Prince takes very seriously. To Norwegian NTB, the Crown Prince said: “Both the ocean rising, but also the storms that come and destroy the communities, affect people’s lives to a large extent. That makes an impression on me”.
Crown Prince Haakon then visited the village of Houma. Lord Vaea was the host and guide for the Crown Prince. The visit to Houma concluded the Crown Prince`s visit to Tonga. Before his departure, he had dinner with local youth where they discussed climate change. The Crown Prince then continued to the airport where he was wished a safe trip to his next stop, Fiji.
Crown Prince Haakon of Norway will visit the nations of Tonga, Fiji and Samoa. The visit will run from 5 April to 11 April. The purpose of the visit is to strengthen partnerships with small island states in the South Pacific for the promotion of common interests including seas and climate, peace and security. Royal Central will follow the visit closely and bring you the latest news from Crown Prince Haakon’s tour.
Featured image: Crown Prince Haakon during his visit to Houma. (Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen / The Royal Court / Det Kongelige Hoff)
NordenBladet – Fimbulwinter is the harsh winter that precedes the end of the world and puts an end to all life on Earth, according to Norse Mythology. The Nordic researchers believe the myth might be a real climate disaster which happened in 535–536. Fimbulwinter is three successive winters, when snow comes in from all directions, without any intervening summer. Then, there will be innumerable wars, according to Norse mythology and the Finns’ national post Kalevala.
The event is described primarily in the Poetic Edda. In Denmark, Norway, Sweden and other Nordic countries, the term fimbulvinter is still used to refer to an unusually cold and harsh winter. Researchers in Norway and Sweden have in recent years found an increasing number of evidences of a disaster that struck the world and the region 1500 years ago, according to forskning.no.
The recent finding point out mythology might be related to the extreme weather events of 535–536, which resulted in a notable drop in temperature across northern Europe. There have also been several popular ideas about whether or not the particular piece of mythology has a connection to the climate change that occurred in the Nordic countries at the end of the Nordic Bronze Age from about 650 BC. Before that climate change, the Nordic countries were considerably warmer.
Half of Norway Died
Probably half of the people died in Norway and Sweden. Researchers now know more and more about the disaster. First the Fimbulwinter lasted three years.
The disaster must have hit Norwegians and Swedes harder. In 1910, the Swedish geographer researcher Rutger Sernander first launched the theory that the Fimbul winter may have been a real event in the Nordic countries. His hypothesis was that this was due to a climate catastrophe between 2000 and 2500 years ago.
Yet archaeologists did not find any evidence to support Sernander’s theory.
Now the recent finding indicate the climate catastrophe hit the world – and especially the Nordic countries 1500 years ago.
NASA and a Swedish archaeologist
The new research for the Fimbul winter started with the American space agency NASA in 1983, according to forskning.no.
Then the two NASA researchers Richard Stothers and Michael Rampino published a scientific overview of known volcanic eruptions back in time. Most of the research was based on ice cores picked up by the ancient ice sheet in Greenland.
Archaeologists came to conslusion that something very dramatic might have happened in the year 536.
Swedish professor Bo Gräslund from Uppsala University was the first to suggest that the Fimbul winter was a real event, and that it took place in the years after 536. He also pointed out that it was not only very cold and snowy winters but also no summer came several years.
NordenBladet – Norwegian entrepreneur Geir Olsen will supply bars, restaurants and cruise boats all over the world with exclusive ice cubes from Norway’s second largest glacier.
The company Svaice AS will extract ice cubes from Norway’s second largest glacier, but has been met with criticism from both environmental and tourism organizations, and politicians locally and nationally, according to NRK.
The ice cube comes from a sample of 50 tonnes of ice from Svartisen. Currently, the ice is located on a cold store in one of the buildings of the former solar cell company REC in Glomfjord, which went bankrupt in 2012.
Geir Olsen and his company Svaice AS bought the building cheaply, and have so far invested NOK 12 million in ice cube production.
Svaice applied to collect up to 3600 m³ of ice from Svartisen and transport it by helicopter. The application met violent protests both locally and nationally.
After the protest, the company has decided not to pick up ice during the tourist season in the summer. They will start in September and finish the production in April.
Geir Olsen rejects that ice cube production will affect the approximately 370 square kilometer glacier that extends through the municipalities of Rana, Meløy and Rødøy,
The tourism offices in Meløy fears the ice cube project will destroy the image of the region and fewer tourists will come.
They fear that the noise from helicopters, machines and vehicles will scare away the tourists.
When the idea was proposed in 2015, both Meløy municipality and the county municipality were positive . But then the mood has changed. Last year, both the County Governor of Nordland and Nordland County Council said that they did not want the continuation of the activities of the company.
However, in February this year, the County Governor withdrew his objection.
Geir Olsen is not willing to give up despite the criticism. He has worked for four years to realize the plans to sell exclusive ice cubes for drinks to be served in Monaco and Dubai.
NordenBladet – The perpetrator of the terror attacks in New Zealand claims in his manifesto that he was in contact with Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 69 people in Norway in 2011, according to Australian media.
Australia’s Prime Minister confirmed on Friday that the suspected perpetrator of the terrorist attacks against two mosques in the city of Christchurch in New Zealand is Brenton Tarrant, “an Australian right-wing terrorist.”
The police confirm that at least 49 people have been killed and another 20 have been seriously injured after the terror attacks.
Australian Tarrant has come to New Zealand to plan and execute the attacks, according to Radio New Zealand.
In a manifest which was allegedly written by Tarrant, he refers to Anders Behring Breivik and claims he has been in contact with the Norwegian right wing extremist who killed 69 people in 2011. He also writes that he has received support for his plans from Breivik’s supporters.
Furthermore, he praises US President Donald Trump and calls him a symbol of renewed white identity.
The writings are an echo of what Anders Behring Breivik wrote in his manifesto, writes the Sydney Morning Herald.
Norway Prime Minister Points Out The Resemblence
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg also noted there are associations with the terror attacks by Breivik in Norway. She added that the terrorist attacks in New Zeland shows the importance of international work against extremism.
-But first and foremost, we today have to show solidarity with the families of all those killed and wounded, says Prime Minister Erna Solberg to VG.
This is a strong reminder that we have to fight extremism in all forms, she says.
-What this looks like is a terrorist attack from the right-wing extremist against immigrants and refugees, and even though it is across the globe, there is a strong reminder of how important it is for all of us to help us bring down tension, works against extremism, and that we have solidarity with each other when something like that happens, adds she.
Featured image: Australian right-wing terrorist Brenton Tarrant (on the left) and Anders Behring Breivik (on the right) serving life sentence in Norway. Photos: Twitter and Oslo Police
NordenBladet – Norway Police Intelligence Service (PST) has charged Laila Anita Bertheussen, the partner of the Norwegian Minister of Justice and Public Security, with the accusation of faking an attack on their family car.
PST wrote on its website today that the arrest is related to violation of section 225 letter b of the Penal Code – for having done something to raise suspicion that criminal act has been committed, when it has not.
The charges concern the fire that started on the night between Saturday and Sunday 10 March in the family car, which was parked outside the family´s residence in Oslo.
“We suspect the charged person to have started the fire, thus giving the impression that the fire was started by one or more unknown perpetrators”, wrote PST.
This incident is seen in connection with previously alleged threats against the Minister of Justice and his partner, where the charged person may have caused the police to investigate this incident, as an escalation of the previous threats. PST will continue to investigate these former incidents as violations of section 115 and 263 of the Penal Code.
The investigation is in a preliminary phase, and Laila Bertheussen is currently being questioned by PST. The offence can, under the circumstances, be punishable under several other penal provisions.
Today, Oslo District Court issued a warrant to search the the justice minister’s residence. The court thus finds that there are reasonable grounds to suspect Berhetussen of the offence with which she is charged.
Section 225 – Accusation of a fictitious criminal act
A penalty of a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 1 year shall be applied to any person who
a) reports a criminal act which has not been committed to the courts, the prosecuting authority or another public authority, or
b) raises suspicion that a criminal act has been committed, when it has not.
The incident was the fifth known “threat” associated with Wara’s home since December last year. In addition, there have been several incidents that have so far been kept secret by the police and PST.
Thursday afternoon, PST chief Benedicte Bjørnland held a press conference where they informed about the charge against the cohabitant.
Bertheussen is not charged with any of the previous incident at the residence, but PST does not rule out that they can have a connection.
The penalty for the charge is one year’s imprisonment.
About the incident
The house and car shared by Justice Minister Tor Mikkel Wara and Bertheussen have been vandalised at least five times in recent months after a theatre targeting the right wing politician and Justice Minister Benedicte Bjørnland. They have included tagging that seemed to accuse Wara of being racist, and two bomb threats.
Since some of the tagging included misspellings of the Norwegian word for racist, others have speculated that it could have been made to look as if non-Norwegians were behind it. PST now investigates the tagging and the earlier incidents also in relation to the recent accusations against the partner of the justice minister.
NordenBladet —The Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mihkelson is taking part in the meeting of the Chairmen of the Foreign Affairs Committees of the Nordic and Baltic parliaments (NB8) in Bergen, Norway, to discuss various problems of international security, ranging from the situation in Afghanistan to food security and condition of the oceans.
Mihkelson cites the situation in Afghanistan as the first topic to be discussed. “The US and allied forces have kept the Afghanistan crisis under control for a long time, barred the spreading of terrorism, and have trained and supported the Afghan security forces,” Mihkelson said. “However, the supposed plan of the US President to leave Afghanistan can now lead to unforeseeable consequences. We will try to shape a common understanding about the further activities with our Nordic and Baltic colleagues.”
The host country Norway also presented its foreign policy goals to the guests yesterday. Another topic was global food security and sustainable management of oceans. Mihkelson said that global food security would keep increasing in importance because the world population is growing, and even now, food security is precarious in certain regions.
“It is critical for every country to remain self-sufficient in strategic food sectors like dairy, meat, fish, and grains, but we must work together to ensure food supplies in countries that suffer from crop failures or military and economic crises,” Mihkelson said.
On the topic of sustainable management of oceans, Mihkelson listed illegal fishing, piracy, climate changes, and marine pollution, all of which put the condition of the oceans at risk. “At the meeting in Bergen, we were looking for ways to ensure safe, secure, clean and fertile seas and oceans worldwide; these regulate our climate, supply us with food and clean air, but also drive our economic growth,” Mihkelson said.
Today, the programme will continue with a visit to the Institute of Marine Reasearch in Austevoll.
NordenBladet – An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), sometimes referred to as polar lights, northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), is a natural light display in the Earth’s sky, predominantly seen in the high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic).
Auroras are produced when the magnetosphere is sufficiently disturbed by the solar wind that the trajectories of charged particles in both solar wind and magnetospheric plasma, mainly in the form of electrons and protons, precipitate them into the upper atmosphere (thermosphere/exosphere) due to Earth’s magnetic field, where their energy is lost.
The resulting ionization and excitation of atmospheric constituents emits light of varying color and complexity. The form of the aurora, occurring within bands around both polar regions, is also dependent on the amount of acceleration imparted to the precipitating particles. Precipitating protons generally produce optical emissions as incident hydrogen atoms after gaining electrons from the atmosphere. Proton auroras are usually observed at lower latitudes.
Etymology
The word “aurora” comes from the Latin word for “dawn, morning light”, since auroras were formerly thought to be the first light of dawn.
Occurrence of terrestrial auroras
Most auroras occur in a band known as the “auroral zone”, which is typically 3° to 6° wide in latitude and between 10° and 20° from the geomagnetic poles at all local times (or longitudes), most clearly seen at night against a dark sky. A region that currently displays an aurora is called the “auroral oval”, a band displaced towards the night side of the Earth. Early evidence for a geomagnetic connection comes from the statistics of auroral observations. Elias Loomis (1860), and later Hermann Fritz (1881) and S. Tromholt (1882) in more detail, established that the aurora appeared mainly in the auroral zone. Day-to-day positions of the auroral ovals are posted on the Internet.
In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis or the northern lights. The former term was coined by Galileo in 1619, from the Roman goddess of the dawn and the Greek name for the north wind. The southern counterpart, the aurora australis or the southern lights, has features almost identical to the aurora borealis and changes simultaneously with changes in the northern auroral zone. The Aurora Australis is visible from high southern latitudes in Antarctica, Chile, Argentina, New Zealand, and Australia.
A geomagnetic storm causes the auroral ovals (north and south) to expand, and bring the aurora to lower latitudes. The instantaneous distribution of auroras (“auroral oval”) is slightly different, being centered about 3–5° nightward of the magnetic pole, so that auroral arcs reach furthest toward the equator when the magnetic pole in question is in between the observer and the Sun. The aurora can be seen best at this time, which is called magnetic midnight.
Auroras seen within the auroral oval may be directly overhead, but from farther away, they illuminate the poleward horizon as a greenish glow, or sometimes a faint red, as if the Sun were rising from an unusual direction. Auroras also occur pole ward of the auroral zone as either diffuse patches or arcs, which can be sub visual.
Auroras are occasionally seen in latitudes below the auroral zone, when a geomagnetic storm temporarily enlarges the auroral oval. Large geomagnetic storms are most common during the peak of the 11-year sunspot cycle or during the three years after the peak. An aurora may appear overhead as a “corona” of rays, radiating from a distant and apparent central location, which results from perspective. An electron spirals (gyrates) about a field line at an angle that is determined by its velocity vectors, parallel and perpendicular, respectively, to the local geomagnetic field vector B. This angle is known as the “pitch angle” of the particle. The distance, or radius, of the electron from the field line at any time is known as its Larmor radius. The pitch angle increases as the electron travels to a region of greater field strength nearer to the atmosphere. Thus, it is possible for some particles to return, or mirror, if the angle becomes 90° before entering the atmosphere to collide with the denser molecules there. Other particles that do not mirror enter the atmosphere and contribute to the auroral display over a range of altitudes. Other types of auroras have been observed from space, e.g.”poleward arcs” stretching sunward across the polar cap, the related “theta aurora”, and “dayside arcs” near noon. These are relatively infrequent and poorly understood. Other interesting effects occur such as flickering aurora, “black aurora” and subvisual red arcs. In addition to all these, a weak glow (often deep red) observed around the two polar cusps, the field lines separating the ones that close through the Earth from those that are swept into the tail and close remotely.
Aurora borealis. Each appearance of the northern lights is unique. Often you see three green bands across the night sky. Or the lights come as flickering curtains or rolling smoke. The color is a luminous green, often with a hint of pink along the edge, and occasionally with a deep violet centre. If there is a lot of activity up there, the northern lights explode for a minute or two in a corona. (Photos: NordenBladet)
The science behind the northern lights
What exactly is the northern lights? It is the sun that lies behind the formation of the auroras.During large solar explosions and flares, huge quantities of particles are thrown out ofthe sun and into deep space. When the particles meet the Earth’s magnetic shield, they areled towards a circle around the magnetic North Pole, where they interact with the upper layers of the atmosphere. The energy which is then released is the northern lights. All this happens approximately 100 kilometres above our heads.
Living legend
Perhaps not so surprisingly, the northern lights’ spectacle has given rise to as many legends as there have been people watching. Symbols linked to the northern lights are found on the Sami shamanistic drum. The phenomenon has several different names in Sami. It is, for instance, known as Guovssahas, which means “the light which can be heard”. The northern lights were traditionally associated with sound by the Sami, the indigenous people of Norway. And during the Viking Age (793–1066 AD), the northern lights were said to be the armour of the Valkyrie warrior virgins, shedding a strange flickering light.
Be patient
When dreaming about seeing the northern lights, you must remember that you are at the complete mercy of nature. The northern lights love to play hide and seek. Observing the Aurora borealis is often a tug of war between your patience and the aurora itself. Stay in the northern lights area at least a week, preferably two, and you will be rewarded – unless local weather suddenly decides to obstruct your view with clouds.
1. Do the Northern Lights really exist?
The bright dancing lights of the aurora are actually collisions between electrically charged particles from the sun that enter the earth’s atmosphere. The lights are seen above the magnetic poles of the northern and southern hemispheres.
2. What is the best time of year to see the northern lights?
In this period of time, no Northern Lights can be observed. In the most intense Northern Lights area (notably Alaska, Iceland, Northern Scandinavia and Yukon), the lights are observed from late August to mid April. However, from late September to late March, it is dark after 6pm, and one enjoys maximum chances.
3. Can you see northern lights with naked eyes?
The Aurora Borealis appears in a spectrum of colors. … Our naked eye can most easily see the green-yellow part of the spectrum where the sun emits most of its light. Green is the most common color observed but the Northern Lights can also appear white-gray.
4. Are the Northern Lights dangerous?
The Northern Lights occur so high up in the atmosphere that they don’t pose any threat to people watching them from the ground. The aurora itself is not harmful to humans but the electrically charged particles produced could have some potentially negative effects to infrastructure and technology.
5. Do the Northern Lights give off radiation?
“Northern Lights appear when high energy particles from the sun collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, causing them to emit light. … And no, the Northern Lights themselves are no source of radiation but a manifestation of what is happening all the time (the sun emits energy).
6. Can you see northern lights if cloudy?
The best conditions for seeing the Northern Lights include a few key factors: Mainly dark skies without any clouds. And, usually, the less light pollution in the sky, the better. … While it’s true that a full moon can dim the Lights a bit, it certainly doesn’t negate your chances of seeing them.
7. How often do the northern lights occur?
April to August. To see the Northern Lights you need dark skies and from early-April until late-August, the Aurora may be blazing across the Arctic firmament but it is visible only to scientific equipment, as the skies are just too light for the human eye to see the show.
8. When can I see northern lights in Norway? Can northern lights be seen in Norway?
The northern lights are therefore always present. Historically, the chances of seeing the northern lights are best viewed in Northern Norway between October and March, because the polar night makes them easier to see. The northern lights are visible in a belt around the magnetic North Pole.
9. Where is the best place to see northern lights Norway?
Tromsø Tromso is “the capital of the Arctic”, and it’s location 217 miles north of the Arctic Circle makes it one of the best places on earth to observe the northern lights. This is the largest city in Northern Norway, and operates as a hub for Safaris and nightly visits to northern light camps.
10. What month is best to see the northern lights in Norway?
The weather in November, December and January can be brutal, so a lot of people say that the best months to see the Northern Lights in Norway are late September, October, February, and March.
11. Can you see Northern Lights from Oslo?
Of course, if the conditions are right, there’s nothing to stop you catching the lights well outside that area. It’s not unheard of to see them as far north as Svalbard or as far south as Oslo – but realistically, the chances of you seeing green skies over the Norwegian capital are very low indeed.
12. Can you see the Northern Lights from the Norwegian fjords?
The Northern Lights are visible between October and March when the sky is clear, depending on the Northern Lights activity. The best place to see the Northern Lights is in the Northern, Arctic parts of Norway.
13. Can you see Northern Lights from Reykjavik?
Can You See The Northern Lights in Reykjavik? … You may be able to see the Northern Lights in the city but a few criteria would have to be met. You will need darkness and clear skies and northern light activity, all three of which only appear together mostly during the winter months.
14. Do the Northern Lights happen every night?
The Northern Lights are unpredictable. In order to see the Northern Lights, you need a dark, clear night. There also needs to be solar flares on the sun or solar wind; the Aurora Borealis happens when particles from the sun enter Earth’s atmosphere and collide violently with gas atoms.
15. Is it a good night to see the northern lights?
The Best Time of Day. First and foremost, to see the Northern Lights, the skies must be dark. Once darkness falls, the Aurora can be visible at any time of day and we have seen them as early as 4pm and as late as 6am (that was quite a night!).
16. What is the auroral oval?
When we look up and see the Northern Lights, we are only seeing a tiny section of a huge auroral oval. The geomagnetic field surrounds the Earth and extends into space as the magnetosphere, and the Geomagnetic Pole is the centre of the region around which the Northern Lights can be seen.
17. What is the auroral zone?
The auroral zone is a ring of light emission created by the precipitation of particles in the atmosphere and centred around the magnetic pole. The cusp and boundary layers on the dayside, and the plasma sheet and plasma sheet boundary layer on the nightside are the sources of these precipitations.
18. Why is it called aurora borealis?
In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis or the northern lights. The former term was coined by Galileo in 1619, from the Roman goddess of the dawn and the Greek name for the north wind. … The aurora can be seen best at this time, which is called magnetic midnight.
NordenBladet – The Norwegian Film Institute pays over NOK 47 million NOK (5.5 million USD) to get James Bond 25 to be filmed in Norway, through the state incentive scheme. It is the largest award for an international production ever, NRK reports.
– We are pleased that the filming of the James Bond 25, could be done in Norway. The grant we offer for the filming, NOK 47 million, is the largest in the incentive scheme’s history, says department director Stine Helgeland for international relations in the Norwegian Film Institute.
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Bond 25 is the working title of the twenty-fifth film in the James Bond series produced by EON Productions for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. Like several previous films, Bond 25 will be written by Neal Purvis and Robert Wade and will feature actor Daniel Craig in his fifth and final performance as James Bond. The film will be directed by Cary Joji Fukunaga, with a projected release date of 14th February 2020.
NordenBladet – Morocco’s counterterrorism chief said Monday (24.Dec) that five more people have been arrested in connection with the horrific ISIS-inspired murders of two Scandinavian hikers in the High Atlas mountains, including the so-called “emir” who masterminded the killings.
Abdelhak Khiam, the head of the country’s central office for judicial investigation, identified the alleged ringleader to Agence France-Presse as Abdessamad Ejjoud, a 25-year-old street vendor who lived on the outskirts of Marrakech. Khiam said Ejjoud had “formed a kind of cell that discussed how to carry out a terrorist act inside the kingdom … targeting the security services or foreign tourists.”
A total of 18 people have been arrested in the murders of 28-year-old Norwegian Maren Ueland and 24-year-old Dane Louisa Vesterager Jespersen, whose bodies were found Dec. 17. Khaim said three of those arrested had terror-related criminal records.
Ejjoud was believed to have carried out the murders along with 33-year-old Abderrahim Khayali, 27-year-old Younes Ouaziyad and 33-year-old Rachid Afatti. Investigators have said the four men shot a video the week before the murders in which they pledged allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. However, Khiam told AFP the four had not had contact with ISIS leaders “in conflict zones, whether in Syria, Iraq or Libya.”
Rachid Afatti (left), Ouziad Younes (centre), alleged mastermind Ejjoud Abdessamad (right) and Abdelrahim el-Khayali (not pictured) allegedly camped out in the High Atlas Mountains two days before the murders. Picture: Morocco Police
Nine of the 18 men were arrested on Friday. Officials said they were heading to the area where the women were beheaded with the intent to commit a crime. According to Boubker Sabik, a spokesman for the Moroccan security and domestic intelligence services, investigators found electronic devices, knives, bomb-making materials and unauthorized rifles.
The killings have shocked Morocco, which has seen relatively few acts of terror compared to its North African and Middle Eastern neighbors. On Saturday, hundreds of people took part in a candlelit vigil outside the Norwegian and Danish embassies in the capital, Rabat.
The killings marked the first terrorist attack to hit Morocco since 2011, when a suicide bomber detonated in Marrakech and killed 16 people. More than 1,000 Moroccans have joined ISIS in recent years, and Moroccan authorities arrested 20 cells with terrorist affiliations between 2017 and 2018.
The killings have prompted concerns about the impact on Morocco’s tourist sector, which accounts for 10% of national income, as the kingdom’s relative security has been a major selling point.
Featured image: Danish Louisa Vesterager Jespersen (24), left, and Norwegian Maren Ueland (28). Ms Jespersen and Ms Ueland were found dead early on December 17 above the village of Imlil near Toubkal, North Africa’s highest peak and a popular hiking and trekking destination. (Source: Facebook) Source: foxnews.com
