Mass murderer Breivik sues Norwegian state over prison conditions

Mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik will take the Norwegian state to court in March over his prison conditions, which he likens to "torture", Norwegian legal sources said Friday.

Breivik, who killed 77 people in a bombing and shooting rampage in July 2011 because he was opposed to Norway's multiculturalism, has complained repeatedly about being held in isolation.

"We believe that his rights are being violated. He is isolated from the other inmates, from other people, and only has contact with health care workers and guards," Breivik's lawyer Oystein Storrvik told AFP.

The case will be heard by the Oslo district court between March 15 and 18, the court said. It was not immediately known whether Breivik will appear before the court.

The right-wing extremist, 36, has repeatedly threatened to go on a hunger strike if his conditions don't improve, most recently in a letter sent to several Norwegian media in September, but he has never carried through on his threat.

"He is focusing on the trial. He is not on a hunger strike at the moment," Storrvik said.

On July 22, 2011, Breivik killed eight people in a bomb attack outside a government building in the capital Oslo and later murdered another 69 people, most of them teenagers, when he opened fire at a Labour Youth camp on the island of Utoeya.

He was handed a 21-year prison sentence, which can be extended if he is still considered a danger to society.

Source: AFP