Bangladeshi blogger hacked to death after posting atheist and anti-Islamic views

A Bangladeshi blogger has been hacked to death by a gang armed with machetes, police said.
Niloy Neel, known for his atheist views and criticism of Islam,was attacked at his home in capital Dhaka on Friday.
He is believed to be the fourth secularist blogger to have been killed this year by suspected Islamist militants in Bangladesh, the BBC reported.

 

Scene: Neel's body is removed from his home

Neel, 40, wrote posts condemning the recent killings of three other bloggers in his country.
He also regularly wrote about women's and minority rights, communal violence and the oppression of Hindus in Bangladesh.

 

Horrific: Neel's home was covered in blood

Imran Sarkar, head of the Bangladesh Blogger and Activist Network, also confirmed Neel's death.
He told the BBC: "He was the voice against fundamentalism and extremism and was even a voice for minority rights - especially women's rights and the rights of indigenous people."

Dhaka Police spokesman, Muntashirul Islam, said: "We know that Niloy used to work for nongovernmental organisations in the past but we are not aware of his journalistic identity. We are investigating."
Ansar al-Islam Bangladesh, an al Qaeda group, has claimed responsibility for the killing.

In an unconfirmed emailed statement seen by CNN, Mufti Abdullah Ashraf, who claims to be the group's spokesman, said: "By the permission of Allah, this operation took place today.
"We declare war against these worst enemies of Allah and his messenger."