Anders Breivik defends youth camp shooting and Oslo bomb blast that left at least 92 people dead, his lawyer says.
The man suspected of a bombing and shooting spree in Norway has called his deeds "atrocious but ... necessary," his lawyer has said.
In an interview with TV2 news on Saturday, Geir Lippestad, who is representing 32-year-old Anders Breivik, said his client was willing to explain himself in a court hearing on Monday.
Lippestad said: "He has said that he believed the actions were atrocious, but that in his head they were necessary."
A judge will decide at the hearing whether to keep the suspect in detention pending trial.
Under Norwegian law, Breivik faces a maximum sentence of 21 years, though that term technically could be extended indefinitely for five years at a time.
Earlier on Saturday, officials in Norway charged Breivik with killing at least 92 people in a gun and bomb attack described as the worst act of violence in the country since World War II.
Police confirmed to Al Jazeera on Saturday that the suspect had been named as Breivik.
Breivik is reported to have belonged to right-wing political groups and to have had a negative view of multiculturalism and the flow of immigrants into Europe, particularly those coming from Muslim countries.
Officials have declined to discuss Breivik's motive other than describing him as "right wing" and a "Christian fundamentalist".
Reports suggest he belonged to an anti-immigration party, wrote blogs attacking multi-culturalism and was a member of a neo-Nazi online forum.
But Norwegian authorities said Breivik, detained by police after 85 people were gunned down at a youth camp and another 7 killed in an Oslo bomb attack on Friday, was previously unknown to them and his internet activity traced so far included no calls to violence.
Source and full story: Al Jazeera, 24 July 2011
