Famous Bangladeshi-American Blogger Stabbed to Death

A well-known Bangladeshi-American blogger, famous for criticizing religious extremism, was killed by knife and cleaver attacks while walking in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh. According to the Associated Press, the police of Bangladesh reported on Friday, March 8, that 'Avijit Roy' was attacked while returning from a book fair at Dhaka University and walking on a busy sidewalk. Avijit Roy's wife, who is also a blogger, was severely injured in the attack. This is the latest incident of attacks against secular writers in Bangladesh in recent years. Shibli Noman, a police commissioner, told the local newspaper 'Prothom Alo' that a group called 'Ansar Bangla 7', which had not been previously known, claimed responsibility for the attack. They wrote on their Twitter account: 'He (Avijit Roy) was targeted for his actions against Islam.' Avijit Roy was a well-known critic of religious extremism, and his family and friends stated that he had previously been threatened due to his writings. Sirajul Islam, the police chief, said that on March 7 at 8:45 PM local time, a group of unknown men surrounded Mr. Avijit and his wife while they were walking towards a roadside tea shop, and at least two of the attackers assaulted them with butcher cleavers. He added that the attackers disappeared into the crowd while fleeing the crime scene. The police found two bloodied cleavers at the crime scene. In Bangladesh, where the majority of the 160 million population is Muslim, similar attacks have occurred in recent years, attributed to radical Islamists. The Associated Press further states that Avijit Roy was the founder of the popular blog 'Muktomona', meaning 'Free Thought', which published scientific and religious articles in Bengali. It seems that this website has been shut down following the attack. In January, Mr. Roy described atheism in a Facebook article as 'a logical concept against any form of illogical and unscientific belief.' Anujit, Mr. Roy's younger brother, said that his brother had come to Bangladesh from the United States in early February and was supposed to return to the U.S. in March. In 2013, another blogger and critic of religious extremism, Ahmed Rajib Haider, was assassinated by unknown attackers near his home in Dhaka. In 2004, prominent writer and Dhaka University professor Humayun Azad was attacked and severely injured while returning from a book fair. Baki Bilal, a blogger and one of Avijit Roy's friends, told 'Independent' television that Mr. Roy had previously been threatened by those dissatisfied with his writings and added: 'He was a free thinker. Avijit Roy was Hindu but opposed not only to Islamism but to all religious fanaticism.'