A gunman has shot dead prominent Jordanian writer Nahed Hattar outside a court where he was facing charges for sharing a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam, state news agency Petra reported.Here's the cartoon, which is not being shown in media coverage of the murder.
Hattar was struck by three bullets before the assailant was arrested on Sunday, Petra said. Witnesses said that a man had opened fire in front of the court in Amman's Abdali district.
The 56-year-old Christian was arrested on August 13 after posting a caricature on his Facebook account that depicted a beared man in heaven smoking in bed with women, asking God to bring him wine and cashews.
It is not known who produced the cartoon.
He removed the cartoon shortly thereafter, saying "it mocks terrorists and their concept of God and heaven. It does not infringe God's divinity in any way".
However, many Jordanian Muslims considered it offensive and against their religion. The authorities said Hatter violated the law by widely sharing the caricature.
He was charged with inciting sectarian strife and insulting Islam before being released on bail in early September.
'Did not mean to offend'
The backlash against Hattar was immediate with Jordanian social media users lambasting the writer for purposely causing offence to Muslims.
Social media users also called on the government to question and arrest Hattar, and some attacked him for being Christian and a secularist.
Attempting to explain his motive for sharing the cartoon, Hattar said that he did not intend to cause offence to Muslims and wanted the cartoon to "expose" the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group and the Muslim Brotherhood.
In another explanation, Hattar said that "as a non-believer" he respected "the believers who did not understand the satire behind the cartoon".
In Green: In paradise…
Allah: “May your evening be joyous, Abu Saleh, do you need anything?”
Jihadist: “Yes Lord, bring me the glass of wine from other there and tell Jibril [the Angel Gabriel] to bring me some cashews. After that send me an eternal servant to clean the floor and take the empty plates with you.”
Jihadist continues: “Don’t forget to put a door on the tent so that you knock before you enter next time, your gloriousness.”
Hattar was arrested and murdered for merely posting it; he didn't create it.