'Breivik spared me -- then shot me'

Adrian Pracon (22) was the only adult survivor who was momentarily spared on July 22, when the Norwegian right-wing extremist gunned down 69 people on the island after setting off a bomb in central Oslo that claimed eight lives.

Pracon testified that Breivik (33), a self-styled anti-Muslim crusader, first found him on Utoya island as he stood knee-deep in water at the shoreline with nowhere to hide.

Decisive

"We got eye contact," the witness said. "I experienced it as if he made a long evaluation. When he turned away, it was very decisive. Almost as if in a military manner." Breivik lowered his weapon and went to hunt down other victims, Pracon said.

Later, Breivik returned to the shoreline where Pracon was lying and this time shot and wounded him in the shoulder, apparently aiming for his head.

"Something died inside of me. I've been asking myself why I was spared? It doesn't give me any meaning," Pracon told the court in the last witness statement from survivors of Breivik's bloody massacre at the Labour Party's annual youth camp on the island.

Since May 11, survivors have given detailed accounts of how Breivik's emotionless "killing machine" hunted them down across the island, tracking them through the small forest and shooting them one by one. The defendant has admitted to the killings, but denies criminal guilt, saying the victims had betrayed their country by embracing immigration.

The trial now moves into a new phase where policemen and former friends will testify. It is expected to last until the end of June.

Breivik, who also spared the life of a young boy he considered to be below combat age, has previously said he left Pracon alone because he thought he looked like he had rightwing views, reminding him of himself.

hnews@herald.ie