Oslo holds solidarity march after deadly June attack outside gay bar

Tens of thousands of people marched though the Norwegian capital Oslo on Saturday in a show of solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community following a fatal shooting at a gay bar in June.

A large Pride parade was originally supposed to take place in Oslo on June 25, but the night before an attacker suddenly fired shots outside the popular venue.

The march on Saturday was not meant to replace the cancelled parade, but rather be a colourful parade dedicated to love, organizers said.

The organizers spoke of an estimated 60,000 participants in the march, which also passed by the bar in question, Norwegian radio reported.

The crowd included Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, several of his Cabinet members and other politicians. “We’re taking back the streets,” Støre told the NTB news agency.

The 43-year-old perpetrator is remanded in custody under suspicion of terrorism.

The attacker opened fire outside the London Pub, an LGBTQ+ nightclub, as well as other venues, in the early hours on June 25. Many were gathered on the street in expectation for the Oslo Pride parade. Two people died and 21 others were injured.

Norwegian intelligence agency PST classified the incident as an Islamist terrorist attack. The man, a Norwegian with Iranian roots, was arrested just minutes after the first shots were fired.

Police are investigating, among other possibilities, the theory that the attack was explicitly directed at the gay community.