Leader: Oslo violation a vile reminder of need for constant vigilance

IN RECENT years European capital cities - London, Lisbon, Madrid - have been singled out for terrorist attack. On each occasion the carnage was followed by incredulity that such acts could be perpetrated in times of heightened security.

The death toll of yesterday's outrages is still mounting and the bomb which ripped through government buildings in the Norwegian capital yesterday occasioned no less a sense of shock - particularly given the widespread view that Oslo, with its relatively smaller population and low-profile nature of its involvement in joint counter-terrorism operations in Afghanistan might somehow be "below the radar" of international terrorism.

But the mass killing at a youth summer camp brings unprecedented horror to Europe, the first time the kind of terrorism which hit Mumbai in 2008 has been experienced here. Even the massacres of Yugoslavia occurred in a brutal civil war, not in the quiet of an untroubled European capital.

Early reports linked the attrocities to a Jihadist movement is some sort of insane revenge for cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed and if so, it is difficult to imagine a better way of turning more Westerners against Islam, despite the fact the vast majority of Muslims are as appalled by such such brutality as anyone else.

Whatever the motives, the attacks have numbed a country which prided itself on its work for peace and its reputation for effective conflict resolution. This is, after all, a nation respected the world over as the home of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Among the often confused and conflicting reports and amid fears of further detonations, priority has understandably been given to tending the wounded and removing citizens from further risk. All roads into the centre of the capital were closed, with security officials fearing another blast. Large areas were cordoned off and bomb experts in the area searched desperately for other devices. Newspapers and television reporters relayed pictures of astonishing chaos and devastation.

The scenes were a painful reminder of how vulnerable civilised society is to acts of such evil. The relatively unfettered movement of people is an essential part of freedom and democracy.

Britain, having suffered more than most - from the IRA campaign of the 70s and 80s to the devastation of 7/7 and the foiled attack at Glasgow Airport - has learnt to cope with disruption, intrusive security checks and bomb defences at vulnerable buildings. But no system of security, however well prepared it may seek to be, can ever be totally secure.

The horrific images from Norway send a chilling reminder across Europe that vigilance must not drop, whether against foreign fanatics bent on a deadly mission or twisted domestic elements advancing a cause by spreading mayhem. Our hearts go out to Norway's victims - we know what you are going through.