Oslo:
Norway has raised its terrorism threat assessment to the second highest level due to an increased risk of attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets, the National Police Directorate said on Tuesday.
Last week, police in neighboring Denmark charged two men suspected of detonating hand grenades near the Israeli embassy in Copenhagen, while police in Sweden are investigating a suspected shooting near the Israeli diplomatic mission in Stockholm.
Norwegian police officers, who are normally unarmed, will now carry weapons across the country following the PST security service’s decision to increase the threat level, the directorate said.
“PST increases the terror threat level in Norway from moderate to high due to the continued escalation of the conflict in the Middle East,” police said in a statement.
“It is mainly the threat to Jewish and Israeli targets that has further intensified,” the statement said.
The PST risk assessment was increased from level three (moderate) to level four (high), on the five-point PST scale, with the top end of the range said to indicate imminent danger.
National Police Commissioner Benedicte Bjoernland said there is a greater chance of an attempted terrorism.
“…we have taken a number of measures to protect the population,” she said in a statement.
Sweden raised its terror alert to the second highest level in August last year after Koran burnings enraged Muslims and provoked threats from jihadists.
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