Top of the Agenda: Norway Attacks Highlight Anti-Muslim Views by the CFR

Top of the Agenda: Norway Attacks Highlight Anti-Muslim Views The massacre of nearly one-hundred Norwegians in Oslo and on nearby Utoya Island by an apparently lone assailant on Friday shed light on the rise of anti-Muslim and anti-immigration political movements throughout Europe. In a 1,500-page online manifesto, the suspect, Anders Behring Breivik, preached against the “Islamization of Western Europe” (WSJ) and multiculturalism, voicing similar concerns to that of many European populist parties throughout the continent. The manifesto – in which the suspect calls Muslims “wild animals” – shows that Breivik was also influenced by a vocal group of American bloggers (NYT)and writers who have warned of a growing Muslim threat to Western culture. Breivik – who is expected to plead not guilty in court today, despite having confessed to bombing government buildings and going on a shooting spree at a Labor Party youth camp – said he wanted to start a new revolution (Guardian) to defeat liberal immigration policies and the spread of Islam. Across Europe, police investigated potential far-right threats (FT), while some mosques in the UK added extra security in the wake of the attacks. Analysis: The American blogs that influenced Breivik provide a window into a strange scene: pro-Western, exceedingly pro-American and friendly to Israel -- but extremely anti-Muslim, aggressively Christian and openly hostile to everything which is liberal, leftist, multi-cultural or internationalist, writes Der Spiegel's Frank Patalong. The most recent election results for nationalist and anti-Islam parties have shown how poisoned the thinking in Europe already is, writes Deutsche Welle's Felix Steiner.