A meeting of the International Union of Socialist Youth in Austria was overshadowed Monday by the terrorist attacks in Norway, while police increased security measures for the event, reported dpa.
Some 2,500 youths from more than 100 countries gathered Monday in Weissenbach on lake Attersee for the summer camp, which takes place every two years in a different country.
A group of 115 Norwegians had planned to attend but cancelled their trip after the killing of 86 people at a socialist youth camp on an island near Oslo on Friday, said Boris Ginner, a spokesperson for the event.
Ginner said the mood among the 15-to-28-year-old participants was very subdued. "Many had acquaintances in Norway. Some have been to the island," he added.
He said the Interior Ministry and private security firms were involved in organizing security for the week-long festival.
Organizers were to hold a memorial event on Monday evening, to be attended by Austria's social democratic Chancellor Werner Faymann.