A prominent Jordanian writer has been shot dead outside a court in Amman where he was due to stand trial for sharing a cartoon on Facebook that was deemed to have been offensive to Islam. According to state news agency Petra, Nahed Hattar, a prominent 56-year-old writer, was shot three times in the head just outside the court. Eyewitnesses cited by Petra say that the shooter, who was arrested at the scene, appeared to be in his 50s and was wearing traditional dress. “He [the gunman] was standing at a short distance of about one meter (yard) in front of Nahed on the stairs of the Supreme Court,” said a witness in a statement to The Associated Press. “Nahed was accompanied with two brothers and a friend when he was shot. The brothers and the friend chased the killer and caught him and handed him over to the police,” said Saad Hattar, the victim’s cousin, according to the Guardian. After the killing, Saad Hattar blamed Jordan’s Prime Minister Hani al-Mulki. “The prime minister was the first one who incited against Nahed when he ordered his arrest and put him on trial for…
Jordanian Writer Shot Dead Outside Amman Court Ahead of Trial for Insulting Islam
September 25, 2016
