A court in Telemark, Norway has denied mass murderer Anders Breivik's parole request, Norway’s public broadcaster NRK has reported. A psychiatrist attending the hearing told the court that Breivik remains a potential danger to society.
"There is a clear risk that [Breivik] will resume the behaviour that led to the 22 July terrorist attack", the court said in its ruling.
NRK reported that the court's decision to keep Breivik in jail was unanimous. The shooter has the right to apply for parole again next year.
Breivik killed a total of 77 people in the 22 July 2011 attacks. He killed the first eight using a bomb planted in Oslo. The rest of his victims, mostly teenagers attending a Norwegian Labour Party camp, were shot on Utøya Island in an hour-long killing spree. His youngest victim was 14 years old. Breivik never expressed remorse for his actions, which he committed to promote his anti-Islam manifesto.
He was arrested by police and stood trial in 2012. Breivik was sentenced to containment – a 21-year-long prison sentence with the option of indefinite prolongation, but also with parole becoming available after 10 years. This is the harshest sentence in Norway.