Blast at U.S. embassy in Oslo may have been a deliberate attack

Blast at U.S. embassy in Oslo may have been a deliberate attack
The area outside U.S. embassy is cordoned off, after the Norwegian police said that the embassy was hit by a loud explosion, in Oslo, Norway, 8 March, 2026.
Reuters

The U.S. embassy in Oslo was hit by a loud explosion early on Sunday (8 March), causing minor damage but no injuries, in what may have been a deliberate attack linked to the crisis in the Middle East, Norwegian police said.

"It's natural to see this in the context of the current security situation and that this could be an attack deliberately targeting the U.S. embassy," Frode Larsen, head of the Oslo police investigation unit told a news conference.

No suspects have been identified at present but police are searching for one or several perpetrators and are cooperating closely with the embassy, Larsen said.

"One of our hypotheses is that this is terrorism, but we are also exploring other options," Larsen later told public broadcaster NRK.

The blast at the embassy compound in western Oslo occurred at 1 a.m. (0000 GMT), sending thick smoke into the street by the entrance of the consular section, eyewitnesses said.

"We are aware of an incident at the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway and are investigating," a State Department spokesperson said, and thanked the Norwegian authorities for supporting the investigation.

The department had nothing further to share at this time, the spokesperson added.

Police vehicles outside the U.S. embassy, after a loud bang was reported at the site, in Oslo, Norway, 8 March, 2026.
Reuters

Norway's government was in contact with officials at the U.S. embassy to convey that this was "an unacceptable act that we take very seriously", Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said in a statement.

"The security of diplomatic missions is very important to us," he said.

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