OSLO, March 8 (Reuters) - The U.S. embassy in Oslo was hit by a loud explosion early on Sunday, causing minor damage but no injuries in what may have been a deliberate attack linked to the crisis in the Middle East, Norwegian police said.
"It's natural to see this in the context of the current security situation and that this could be an attack deliberately targeting the U.S. embassy," Frode Larsen, head of the Oslo police investigation unit told a news conference.
No suspects have been identified at present but police are searching for one or several perpetrators and are cooperating closely with the embassy, Larsen said.
"One of our hypotheses is that this is terrorism, but we are also exploring other options," Larsen later told public broadcaster NRK.
The blast at the embassy compound in western Oslo occurred at 1 a.m. (0000 GMT), sending thick smoke into the street by the entrance of the consular section, eyewitnesses said.
"We are aware of an incident at the U.S. Embassy in Oslo, Norway and are investigating," a State Department spokesperson said, and thanked the Norwegian authorities for supporting the investigation.
The department had nothing further to share at this time, the spokesperson added.
Norway's government was in contact with officials at the U.S. embassy to convey that this was "an unacceptable act that we take very seriously", Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said in a statement.
"The security of diplomatic missions is very important to us," he said.
SMOKE AND DAMAGE
The blast occurred at the entry to the consular section, Oslo police said, and witnesses said the entrance had been damaged.
"There was a very thick layer of smoke on the street," said Sebastian Toerstad, 18, a high school student who drove past the embassy at the time of the explosion.
"There was some damage to the entrance," Toerstad told Reuters.
Police said no further explosive devices had been found in the area.
(Reporting by Gwladys Fouche, Nora Buli and Terje Solsvik in OsloAdditional reporting by Sergio Non and Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Helen Popper, Alexandra Hudson and Ros Russell)
