The US embassy in Oslo was hit by an explosion early Sunday, according to Norwegian police who said the blast caused minor damage but no injuries.
The blast comes at a time of heightened security for US embassies and consulates around the world as Israel and the United States conduct a rapidly escalating bombing campaign against Iran.
Multiple US diplomatic buildings in Gulf kingdoms that host American troops have been targeted by Iranian retaliatory strikes, including in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
“We’ve determined that an explosion hit the American embassy,” Oslo police spokesperson Mikael Dellemyr told public broadcaster NRK, adding that the blast occurred at the entry to the compound’s consular section.
Eyewitnesses reported a loud explosion near the embassy compound in western Oslo at around 1 a.m.
“There was a very thick layer of smoke on the street,” Sebastian Toerstad, an 18-year-old school student who drove past the embassy at the time of the incident, told the Reuters news agency.
“There was some damage to the entrance.”
A search for the perpetrators was ongoing, while no further explosive devices had been found in the area, authorities confirmed.
“The police are in a dialog with the embassy and there are no reports of any injured persons,” the Oslo police department said in a separate statement.
