Jordan shooter identified as local imam upset over cartoon

Jordanian media, citing anonymous officials, have identified the man who shot and killed prominent and outspoken writer Nahed Hattar in front of the Amman courthouse where he had been on trial for sharing a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam.

The shooter is named as Riad Abdullah, an imam in his late 40s in northern Hashmi, a poor neighborhood in Amman.

The reports say Abdullah had recently returned from a trip abroad, but give no further details.

The Khabirni news site says Abdullah confessed to police that he was upset over the cartoon, which depicted a bearded man, smoking and in bed with two women, asking God to bring him wine and cashews.

All physical depictions of God or the Prophet Muhammad, even respectful ones, are forbidden under mainstream Islamic tradition.

Witnesses and police say Hattar, 56, was preparing to enter the courthouse for a hearing when the gunman shot him at close range.

The witness said the shooter, who was immediately arrested, was wearing a long grey robe and long beard characteristic of conservative Muslims.

— AP