imported>Smallangryplanet: Copyfix (via WP:JWB)

2025-04-16T13:22:54Z

Copyfix (via WP:JWB)

New page

{{pp|small=yes}}
{{Short description|Anti-Jewish riots perpetrated mainly by Muslim youth in Norway during the Gaza War}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
| title = 2008–2009 Oslo riots
| partof = the [[Israeli–Palestinian conflict]]
| image = Oslo_riot_detaines.jpg
| caption = Norwegian police officers with arrested rioters, 2009
| location = [[Oslo]], Norway
| coordinates = {{coord|59|54|48|N|10|44|20|E|region:NO-03|display=it}}
| date = 29 December 2008 – 10 January 2009<br />({{Age in months, weeks and days|2008-12-29|2009-01-10}})
| target = [[Jews]] (primarily), [[Queer|queers]], pro-[[Israel]] activists, government/police personnel
| type = Riots and arson, vandalism, [[hate crimes]]
| weapons = Stones, [[Molotov cocktails]], bottles, iron rods, [[fireworks]], etc.
| numparts = Hundreds with direct involvement among thousands of protesters
| dfen = [[Oslo Police District]]
| motive = Outbreak of the [[Gaza War (2008–2009)|Gaza War]] between Israel and [[Hamas]]-led [[Palestinian political violence|Palestinian militants]] on 27 December
| accused = 200+ arrested (mainly [[Islam in Norway|Muslims]] and [[Blitz House|Blitz]]-affiliated leftists)
| convicted = 10 prosecuted and less than 10 convicted
}}

On 29 December 2008, a large-scale series of riots broke out across [[Oslo]], [[Norway]], two days after [[Israel]] initiated "[[Gaza War (2008–2009)|Operation Cast Lead]]" against [[Palestinian political violence|Palestinian militants]] in the [[Gaza Strip]]. Stemming from ongoing pro-Palestinian protests in the city, the initial riots took place outside of the [[Israel–Norway relations|Embassy of Israel]] and continued for almost two weeks. The most violent and destructive riots took place on 8 and 10 January, when hundreds or thousands of demonstrators spread throughout Oslo and attacked public and private property (particularly government buildings, [[McDonald's]], and the [[Norwegian Order of Freemasons|Oslo Freemasonry Lodge]]) as well as civilians: the rioters mainly targeted [[Jews]] and people suspected of being Jewish, but also attacked people affiliated with the [[LGBT rights in Norway|LGBT community]] and known and suspected pro-Israel activists. Additionally, violent clashes between the demonstrators and Norwegian police officers led to hundreds of injuries. Between 29 December and 10 January, the [[Oslo Police District|Oslo Police]] had arrested around 200 people, mostly [[Islam in Norway|Muslims]], of whom a significant number were registered [[Asylum seeker|asylum seekers]]. The rioters had been supported by left-wing activists of [[Blitz House|Blitz]].

==Timeline of the riots==
On 29 December 2008, around 1,000 anti-Israel protesters moved towards the Israeli embassy in Parkveien, where speeches were held by people including [[Inga Marte Thorkildsen]] of the [[Socialist Left Party (Norway)|Socialist Left Party]].<ref name="db301208">{{Cite news|title=- Tåregassen var i henhold til reglene|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2008/12/30/nyheter/innenriks/demonstrasjon/israel/palestina/4191932/|work=Dagbladet|date=30 December 2008|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Other organisations behind the demonstration were the [[Red Party (Norway)|Red Party]], [[Red Youth (Norway)|Red Youth]] (RU), [[Socialist Youth (Norway)|Socialist Youth]] (SU) and the [[Norwegian People's Aid]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2008/12/29/nyheter/demonstrasjoner/midtosten/oslo/4189845/|title=Skjøt raketter mot ambassaden|work=Dagbladet|date=29 December 2008|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The protest turned violent when around 100 youth, mainly [[Blitz (movement)|Blitz]] activists and "young boys" breached police roadblocks and began throwing [[Molotov cocktail]]s and [[criminal rock throwing|stones]] at the embassy and the police, striking several police officers, amid rioters heard shouting "[[takbir|allahu akbar]]".<ref name="db301208"/><ref name="vg301208">{{cite news |url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/artikkel.php?artid=545651 |title=Fire i arrest etter demonstrasjon mot Israel |work=[[Verdens Gang]] |date=30 December 2008 |language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=- Skjøt nyttårsraketter mot politiet ved Israels ambassade|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/midtoesten/skjoet-nyttaarsraketter-mot-politiet-ved-israels-ambassade/a/545581/|work=Verdens Gang|date=29 December 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Gasoline was drawn from nearby cars to set fire to trash bins that were launched against the police.<ref name="db301208"/> Three windows of the hairdressing salon of a well-known [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] was smashed, with circumstances suggesting a [[hate crime]].<ref name="antisemitism"/><ref>{{Cite news|title=- Som å komme til en krigssone|url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/--Som-a-komme-til-en-krigssone-6607185.html|work=Aftenposten|date=30 December 2008|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Police responded by firing tear gas at the rioters, and eventually detained nine youths of which four were arrested, including two [[asylum seeker]]s.<ref name="db301208"/><ref name="vg301208"/>

On 4 January 2009, an anti-Israel demonstration arranged by the Palestine Committee of Norway, Red Party and Blitz began outside the [[Storting building|Norwegian parliament building]] and then moved to the Israeli embassy. Members of the crowd grew violent, and around 200 protesters including [[Hezbollah]] supporters began throwing stones and shooting fireworks against the police. The rioters were dispersed by police firing tear gas, after receiving several warnings.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Bruker tåregass mot demonstranter utenfor Israels ambassade|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/04/nyheter/innenriks/demonstrasjon/israel/blitz/4244467/|work=Dagbladet|date=4 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Brukte tåregass på demonstranter|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/brukte-taregass-pa-demonstranter-1.6383701|publisher=NRK|date=4 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref>
[[File:Oslo riots 10 January 2009.jpg|thumb|Confrontation between the rioters and police officers, 10 January 2009]]
[[File:Blitz standoff police Oslo riots.jpg|thumb|Police officers engaged in a standoff with [[Blitz House|Blitz activists]], 10 January 2009]]

On 8 January, around 200 police officers were stationed out in anticipation of protests as a peaceful pro-Israel rally arranged by organisations such as [[With Israel for Peace]] (MIFF) was to be held outside the Norwegian parliament building, with the [[Progress Party (Norway)|Progress Party]] leader [[Siv Jensen]] scheduled to give a pro-Israel speech.<ref name="vg080109">{{cite news |url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtosten/artikkel.php?artid=545848 |title=Politiet frykter bråk under Israel-demonstrasjon |work=Verdens Gang |date=8 January 2008 |language=Norwegian}}</ref> During Jensen's speech, anti-Israel activists started throwing rocks at the pro-Israel demonstrators, forcing Jensen to leave the podium.<ref name="vg080109b">{{cite news |url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtosten/artikkel.php?artid=545854 |title=Politiet bruker tåregass mot demonstranter |work=Verdens Gang |date=8 January 2009 |language=Norwegian}}</ref> The police used tear gas when rioters attacked a bus that tried to evacuate pro-Israeli activists from the area, which included a large number of elderly demonstrators.<ref name="vg080109b"/> A pro-Israel protester was attacked and injured by anti-Israel protesters shouting "take him, he's a Jew", "fucking Jew" and "allahu akbar".<ref name="dagbladet">{{cite news | first=Harald S. | last=Klungtveit| title=Ta ham! Jævla jøde! | date=9 January 2009 | url =http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/09/nyheter/opptoyer/krigen_i_gaza/4312704/ | work =Dagbladet |language = Norwegian }}</ref> Among other slogans, protesters shouted "death to the Jews," "kill the Jews" and "slaughter the Jews" in [[Arabic]].<ref name="antisemitism"/> An additional fifteen police officers from the Asker and Bærum police district were eventually brought in for assistance.<ref>{{Cite news|title=- Ingenting med Gaza å gjøre|url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/politikk/--Ingenting-med-Gaza-a-gjore-5558863.html|work=Aftenposten|date=9 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The final count reported forty shop windows to have been smashed in the riots, and several cars and buses damaged, including fifteen police cars.<ref>{{Cite news|title=- Pøblene må stoppes nå|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/midtoesten/poeblene-maa-stoppes-naa/a/545932/|work=Verdens Gang|date=9 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> At least six people were reported to have been injured, of which five police officers, one mutilated in the face by an iron rod.<ref name="nrk090109"/><ref>{{Cite news|title=- Min kollega fikk jernstang i munnen|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/10/nyheter/opptoyer/krigen_i_gaza/israel/palestina/4314607/|work=Dagbladet|date=10 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Police said they had found several secret stashes of Molotov cocktails, club weapons and knives throughout Oslo during the evening.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Fant hemmelige våpenlagre i Oslo sentrum|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/fant-hemmelige-vaapenlagre-i-oslo-sentrum/a/545996/|work=Verdens Gang|date=9 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> 37 mainly immigrant-background rioters were detained by the police,<ref name="nrk090109">{{Cite news|title=Blitz hilser opprørerne velkommen|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/blitz-hilser-opprorerne-velkommen-1.6425480|publisher=NRK/NTB|date=9 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Tar ikke avstand fra gatekampene i Oslo|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtoesten/tar-ikke-avstand-fra-gatekampene-i-oslo/a/546067/|work=Verdens Gang|date=10 January 2010|language=Norwegian}}</ref> of which fifteen were brought into custody, and nine charged with violence against police.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Ni siktet for vold mot politiet|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/ni-siktet-for-vold-mot-politiet-1.6426050|publisher=NRK|date=9 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref>

[[File:McDonald's destroyed Oslo riots.jpg|thumb|left|150px|Police officers inspecting a [[McDonald's]] that was accused of "supporting" [[Israel]] and attacked by the rioters, 8 January 2009]]
On 9 and 10 January new anti-Israel demonstrations were arranged by an alliance of several organisations, including the [[Workers' Youth League (Norway)|Workers' Youth League]] (AUF), Red Party, Red Youth (RU), Socialist Youth (SU), Norwegian People's Aid, [[Rabita Mosque|Islamic Association]], and other pro-Palestine and Muslim organisations.<ref name="nrk090109"/><ref>{{Cite news|title=Ny demonstrasjon: Politiet brukte tåregass - flere pågrepet|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtoesten/ny-demonstrasjon-politiet-brukte-taaregass-flere-paagrepet/a/550073/|work=Verdens Gang|date=10 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Blitz stated openly that they supported the violent riots.<ref name="nrk090109"/> On 10 January, 3,000 demonstrators were joined by the [[Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions]] (LO) and Minister of Finance [[Kristin Halvorsen]].<ref name="nrk100109">{{Cite news|title=160 personer innbrakt av politiet|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/160-personer-arrestert-1.6427157|publisher=NRK|date=10 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Arrangørene uenige om vaktholdet under demonstrasjonen|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtoesten/arrangoerene-uenige-om-vaktholdet-under-demonstrasjonen/a/550133/|work=Verdens Gang|date=11 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The protest soon erupted into new riots as fireworks and rocks were thrown at the police and the Israeli embassy, with at least two people injured and several police officers struck by objects.<ref name="nrk100109"/><ref>{{Cite news|title=130 demonstranter innbragt|url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/130-demonstranter-innbragt-5558989.html|work=Aftenposten|date=10 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The violence spread throughout Oslo, and numerous shop windows were smashed and cars damaged.<ref name="vg110109">{{Cite news|title=Pågrepne demonstranter nekter for alt|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtoesten/paagrepne-demonstranter-nekter-for-alt/a/550169/|work=Verdens Gang|date=11 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Five [[McDonald's]] restaurants were destroyed in the riots because of a false rumor spread by text message that all the money McDonald's earned that day would go to support Israel.<ref name="vg110109"/><ref>{{Cite news|title=Pøbler angriper McDonalds-restauranter etter Israel-rykter|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/midtoesten/poebler-angriper-mcdonalds-restauranter-etter-israel-rykter/a/550087/|work=Verdens Gang|date=10 January 2010|language=Norwegian}}</ref> Some of the youngest rioters reported to have been told by older youths to "hunt for Jews", with one group severely beating up a shop owner accused of being a Jew.<ref>{{Cite news|title=- Vi ble bedt om å jakte jøder på Blindern, sier 12-åring|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/11/nyheter/2400/innenriks/oslo/tyveri/4324990/|work=Dagbladet|date=11 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The [[Norwegian Order of Freemasons|Oslo Freemasonry Lodge]], which hosted a children's Christmas party with 300 people was deliberately attacked with fireworks after crushing a window open, nearly causing a fire.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Her angriper de juletrefesten|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/10/nyheter/innenriks/opptoyer/oslo/2400/4324868/|work=Dagbladet|date=10 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Satte fyr på Frimurerlosjen - dømt til tre års fengsel|url=http://www.aftenposten.no/nyheter/iriks/Satte-fyr-pa-Frimurerlosjen---domt-til-tre-ars-fengsel-6675332.html|work=Aftenposten|date=19 October 2011|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The police detained 160 rioters during the evening, charging eleven with property damage and violence against police.<ref name="vg110109"/>

A total of 194 protesters were arrested during the 8 and 10 January riots.<ref>{{Cite news|title=72 barn deltok i opptøyene|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/72-barn-deltok-i-opptoyene-1.6442648|publisher=NRK|date=21 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The police stated that they would investigate all the arrested and that most of them would receive fines of 9,000 [[Norwegian krone|NOK]] (around US$1,300).<ref name="dagbladet"/><ref name="vg110109"/> In the end, only ten rioters were prosecuted by the police,<ref name="vg250309">{{Cite news|title=Slipper straff etter Oslo-opptøyer|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/midtoesten/slipper-straff-etter-oslo-opptoeyer/a/551712/|work=Verdens Gang|date=25 March 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> and less than ten convicted.<ref name="forskning">{{Cite news|title=Opptøyene i Oslo vekket unge muslimer politisk|url=http://forskning.no/krig-og-fred/2012/11/opptoyene-i-oslo-vekket-unge-muslimer-politisk|publisher=Forskning.no|date=2 February 2013|language=Norwegian}}</ref> The Oslo Trade Association called the small number of prosecutions by the police "unacceptable" and "deeply worrying".<ref name="vg250309"/>

==Analysis and aftermath==
[[File:Shop windows smashed Oslo riots.jpg|thumb|160px|Local shop after being attacked by the rioters, 8 January 2009]]
In his book ''The Anti-Jewish Riots in Oslo'' (2010), Norwegian author and editor Eirik Eiglad, himself a socialist who was present in Oslo during the riots, wrote:<ref name="antisemitism">{{cite journal |last1=Gerstenfeld |first1=Dr. Manfred |date=Spring 2010 |title=2009: Norway's Most Violent Anti-Semitic Riots Ever |journal=Jewish Political Studies Review |publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs |volume=22 |issue=1–2 |url=http://jcpa.org/JCPA/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=3&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=625&PID=0&IID=3643&TTL=Manfred_Gerstenfeld_on_The_Anti-Jewish_Riots_in_Oslo,_by_Eirik_Eiglad |access-date=2010-04-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613030450/http://jcpa.org/JCPA/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=3&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=625&PID=0&IID=3643&TTL=Manfred_Gerstenfeld_on_The_Anti-Jewish_Riots_in_Oslo,_by_Eirik_Eiglad |archive-date=2010-06-13 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
{{quote|As far as I can judge, these were the largest anti-Jewish riots in Norwegian history. Even before and during World War II, when anti-Semitic prejudices were strong, public policies were discriminatory, and the Nazified State Police efficiently confiscated Jewish property and deported Jews on that despicable slave ship ''[[SS Donau (1929)|SS Donau]]'' - even then, Norway had not seen anti-Jewish outbursts of this scale. This country had no previous history of wanton anti-Jewish mass violence.}}

Police investigators noted similarities in the ''modus operandi'' of the Oslo riots with earlier riots [[2005 French riots|in Paris]] and in the [[Middle East]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Ser likheter mellom opptøyene i Paris, Midtøsten og Oslo|url=http://www.dagbladet.no/2009/01/11/nyheter/krigen_i_gaza/israel/innenriks/politi/4326515/|work=Dagbladet|date=11 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref>

In cooperation with Norwegian education authorities, Islamic leaders in Norway initiated "dialogue meetings" with youths in [[mosque]]s following the riots, with the aim of "using the [[Quran]]" to reach out to youths who had participated in the riots.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Bråkmakere i moskeen|url=http://www.nrk.no/ostlandssendingen/brakmakere-i-moskeen-1.6434249|publisher=NRK|date=15 January 2009|language=Norwegian}}</ref> [[Tariq Ramadan]] later visited Oslo and held speeches in the [[Rabita Mosque]].<ref name="forskning"/>

The riots have been credited by [[Sociology|sociologists]] for "awakening" young Norwegian Muslims politically.<ref name="forskning"/><ref name="journal">{{Cite journal|first1=Christine M.|last1=Jacobsen|first2=Mette|last2=Andersson|title='Gaza in Oslo': Social imaginaries in the political engagement of Norwegian minority youth|journal=Ethnicities|volume=12|number=6|pages=821–843|date=December 2012|doi=10.1177/1468796812451097|s2cid=145643296 }}</ref> Others have drawn connections to February 2010, when thousands of Oslo taxi drivers blocked the city centre, and 3,000 Muslims took part in an illegal demonstration against newspaper ''[[Dagbladet]]'' for publishing a Muhammad cartoon in the context of a news story about an internet link (which the newspaper strongly criticised), during which one of the speakers, [[Mohyeldeen Mohammad]] "warned" of a 9/11 or 7/7 in Norway.<ref name="antisemitism"/><ref name="VG2">{{cite news|url=http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/artikkel.php?artid=584086|title=3000 i ulovlig Muhammed-demonstrasjon ved Oslo S |work=Verdens Gang|language=Norwegian|date=12 February 2010}}</ref>

The riots have later been noted as an important shared experience and common denominator for many members of the Norwegian Salafi-jihadist group [[Profetens Ummah]], and [[Foreign rebel fighters in the Syrian Civil War|Norwegian jihadists]] in the [[Syrian Civil War]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=Norske jihadister har endret landegrenser|url=http://www.dagsavisen.no/innenriks/norske-jihadister-har-endret-landegrenser-1.302307|work=Dagsavisen|date=1 December 2014|language=Norwegian}}</ref> One participant in the riots, leftist turned-Muslim convert [[Anders Cameroon Østensvig Dale]] went on to become an internationally wanted terrorist as a bomb-maker for [[Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula]] (AQAP).<ref>{{Cite news|title=Familien tipset politiet om Al Qaida-nordmann|url=http://www.nrk.no/urix/familien-tipset-politiet-1.8234150|publisher=NRK|date=5 July 2012|language=Norwegian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Dette er den terrorsiktede nordmannen Anders Dale (35)|url=http://www.tv2.no/a/5815714|publisher=TV 2|date=16 July 2014|language=Norwegian}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Antisemitism in contemporary Norway|Antisemitism in Norway]]
*[[2009 Malmö anti-Israel riots]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* '''Video:''' [http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/artikkel.php?artid=545651 29 December riots], [http://www.vg.no/nyheter/innenriks/midtoesten/poeblene-maa-stoppes-naa/a/545932/ 8 January riots], [http://www.vg.no/nyheter/utenriks/midtoesten/paagrepne-demonstranter-nekter-for-alt/a/550169 10 January riots] (''Verdens Gang'')
* '''Photo series:''' [http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/1.6424886 NRK]

{{Jews and Judaism in Norway}}
{{Gaza War (2008–2009)}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oslo riots}}
[[Category:2000s political riots]]
[[Category:Ethnic riots]]
[[Category:Religious riots]]
[[Category:2008 riots]]
[[Category:2009 riots]]
[[Category:2008 in Norway]]
[[Category:2009 in Norway]]
[[Category:Gaza War (2008–2009)]]
[[Category:Antisemitic attacks and incidents in Europe]]
[[Category:Antisemitism in Norway]]
[[Category:Anti-Zionism in Norway]]
[[Category:Islam and antisemitism]]
[[Category:Islamism in Norway]]
[[Category:Israel–Norway relations]]
[[Category:Jews and Judaism in Oslo]]
[[Category:2008 crimes in Norway]]
[[Category:2009 crimes in Norway]]
[[Category:Crime in Oslo]]
[[Category:Anti-Israeli sentiment in Europe]]
[[Category:December 2008 in Europe]]
[[Category:January 2009 in Europe]]
[[Category:Riots and civil disorder in Norway]]
[[Category:2000s in Oslo]]
[[Category:Persecution by Muslims]]

2008–2009 Oslo anti-Israel riots - Revision history

imported>Smallangryplanet: Copyfix (via WP:JWB)