Waterstones lists Norwegian Islamophobic terrorist manifesto

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
23 Jul 2023 16:08
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UK bookseller, Waterstones, lists manifesto of far-right terrorist Anders Breivik who killed 77 people in 2011 in two consecutive events, before taking it down after attention was drawn to it.

Accused Norwegian Anders Behring Breivik gestures as he arrives at the courtroom, in Oslo, Norway, April 17, 2012. (AP)

Britain’s biggest book chain, Waterstones, listed the manifesto of far-right terrorist Anders Breivik on its website last Wednesday before it was later removed.

Breivik's atrocity has been dubbed the worst peacetime crime in Norway after it resulted in the death of 77 people. Waterstones removed the book after they were informed who Breivik was.

In July 2011, Breivik murdered eight people in an Oslo car bomb before heading toward a youth camp in Utoya where 69 people, most of which had been teenagers, were shot dead.

Breivik released a 1,500-page Islamophobic manifesto just hours prior to committing these atrocious attacks. The manifesto was aimed at establishing a mindset for the reader and prepare them to conduct similar attacks. It follows Breivik's journey mentally and physically, in which he set himself as an example. The Guardian reported that even some sections were plagiarised from the infamous Unabomber.

If you had any doubts whether the Buffalo shooting was a hate crime or not, you now have an answer.#BuffaloMassacre pic.twitter.com/DyqHpNt1gg
— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) May 18, 2022

A Waterstones spokesperson explained, however, that "these titles were never stocked in our bookshops and were not available to order on our website or in shops. At no point were these titles part of our curation.”

The Guardian also cited experts underscoring that the manifesto violated UK counter-terrorism legislation giving the example of Sam Imrie, a man who was convicted of encouraging terrorism as well as collecting information useful to an individual preparing an act of terrorism because a copy of Breivik's manifesto was found in his home.