A prominent and controversial Jordanian writer – who was on trial for sharing a cartoon deemed offensive to Islam – has been shot dead outside the Amman court where he was due to appear. Nahed Hattar was assassinated in front the Supreme Court in Amman with local media reporting he was shot three times in the head. The shooter has reportedly been arrested by security forces.

Hattar, a Christian and an anti-Islamist activist who was a supporter of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, was arrested last month after he shared a caricature  The authorities said he violated the law by sharing the caricature.

The state news agency quoted a security source as saying Hattar was killed by a man who fired three shots at him on the steps of the palace of justice in the Jordanian capital. After angry reactions on social media, the Jordanian authorities decided to take legal action against Hattar, who initially went into hiding but later surrendered. Nahed Hattar was killed by three bullets as he was going to the courthouse to stand trial