Unidentified attackers kill U.S. religion blogger in Dhaka

DHAKA, Bangladesh – A prominent U.S. blogger, known for his writing against religious fundamentalism, has been hacked to death with cleavers by unidentified attackers in Bangladesh’s capital, police said earlier today.

The attack on Avijit Roy, a Bangladesh-born U.S. citizen, took place late Thursday when he and his wife, Rafida Ahmed, who was seriously injured in the attack, were returning from a book fair at Dhaka University.

It was not known who was behind the attack, but Roy’s family and friends say he was a prominent voice against religious fanatics and received threats in the past. No groups have claimed the responsibility.

The local police chief, Sirajul Islam, told the Associated Press the assailants used cleavers to attack Roy and his wife, who is also a blogger.

“Several attackers took part in the attack and at least two assailants hit them directly,” Islam said, adding that two blood-stained cleavers were found after the attack.

Roy had founded a popular Bengali-language blog – Mukto-mona, or Free Mind – in which articles on scientific reasoning and religious extremism featured prominently.

Anujit Roy, his younger brother, said Roy had returned to the country earlier this month from the U.S. and was planning to return there next month.

Similar attacks have taken place in Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority nation of 160 million people but ruled by secular laws, in the past. Investigators have said religious fanatics were behind those attacks.

“He was a free thinker. He was a Hindu, but he was not only a strong voice against Islamic fanatics, but also equally against other religious fanatics,” said Baki Billah, a friend of Roy and a blogger.