DHAKA, Bangladesh, April 7 (UPI) -- A Bangladeshi law student who was critical of radical Islamists was killed on the street in the latest attack on secular writers.
Witnesses said a group of men with machetes surrounded Nazimuddin Samad, 26, in a crowded intersection of the Bangladeshi capital of Dhaka at about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday. He was slashed in the head and shot, police said.
Samad, who has also been identified as Mohammad Nazim Uddin, was a vocal opponent of radical Islam, frequently expressing his views on Facebook.
Samad's friends said they repeatedly asked him to stop writing the critical posts for fear of retribution. Gulam Rabbi Chowdhury, a childhood friend, said he stopped briefly
"To tell the truth, he was always a little detached from his family; he had trouble with them because of his views on religion," Chowdhury said. "He was very outspoken. He didn't worry about whether you were with him or not."
In December, two people were sentenced to death and six others to prison in the 2013 death of secular blogger and activist Rajib Haider.
In 2015, at least six writers and publishers connected to atheist writings were shot and stabbed in separate incidents. Islamist militant group Ansarullah Bangla Team claimed responsibility for some of the attacks.
