(Reuters/Holm Morten)Debris is seen on the street after a powerful explosion rocked central Oslo July 22, 2011.
A number of explosions have hit government buildings in Oslo, Norway Friday, with seven people already confirmed dead and many others reported as seriously injured.
The explosions blew glass across the street and in the aftermath people could be seen sitting in the road with blood streaming down their faces.
The cause of the blast is not yet known, and reports are still contradictory about whether there was just a single blast, or whether that was followed by a second explosion.
The incident occurred at 3:30 p.m. local time (9:30 a.m. EDT). Linda Reinholdsen, a reporter for Norwegian state broadcaster NRK has reported that a first explosion occurred near a government building housing the office of Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg. The reporter added that a second explosion is thought to have hit the Norwegian parliament building.
Reuters has reported that one explosion is thought to have happened on an upper floor of the main government building.
The Norwegian prime minister is believed to be unharmed.
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According to CNN, the Oslo University Hospital has confirmed that so far seven patients have arrived there and are being treated for wounds suffered from the explosions.
No one has claimed responsibility for the apparent attacks, although Norway has received threats over its involvement in conflicts in Afghanistan and Libya.
The wreckage of a car outside one building has reportedly indicated that a car bomb may have been responsible for one of the explosions, although official confirmation is still to be given.
According to Reuters, David Lea, an analyst at Control Risks has said: "There certainly aren't any domestic Norwegian terrorist groups although there have been some al Qaida-linked arrests from time to time. They are in Afghanistan and were involved in Libya, but it's far too soon to draw any conclusions."
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