Norwegian mass killer Breivik seeks parole for second time

The anti-Muslim neo-Nazi killed eight people after detonating a car bomb in Oslo before gunning down 69, mostly teenagers, at a youth camp in 2011

FILE PHOTO: Anders Behring Breivik and attorney Marte Lindholm attend a court hearing at Ringerike prison, in Tyristrand, Norway, Jan 8, 2024. Cornelius Poppe/NTB/via REUTERS

Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian mass murderer behind the country's worst peacetime atrocity, will appear in court on Tuesday to argue he should be released from prison after spending over 13 years behind bars.

The anti-Muslim neo-Nazi killed 77 people in July 2011. He killed eight with a car bomb in Oslo and then gunned down 69, most of them teenagers, at a Labour Party youth camp on Utoeya island.

It will be Breivik's second attempt at parole. He is serving a 21-year sentence, the maximum penalty at the time of his crimes, which can be extended for as long as he is deemed a threat to society.

Breivik became eligible to seek parole after serving the first ten years of his term.

His first attempt at release, in 2022, was unsuccessful. At that hearing, Breivik argued he had put violence behind him but did not renounce his neo-Nazi sympathies, saying merely he would continue his fight for white supremacy through peaceful means.

The latest parole application will be heard at the high-security prison where he is held, set on the shore of the Tyrifjorden lake, where Utoeya also lies. The court will be set up in the prison's gymnasium. Breivik will testify from 1300 CET (1200 GMT).

Separately, Breivik has tried to sue the Norwegian state to improve his prison conditions, arguing that being held in isolation violates his human rights.

His latest attempt to change the terms of his detention, in January, was rejected. Breivik's appeal will be heard in December.