Story highlights Nahed Hattar shared a cartoon mocking jihadists' view of heaven

The cartoon prompted an outcry from some Muslim groups

(CNN) A prominent Jordanian writer facing charges for sharing a "blasphemous" anti-ISIS cartoon that outraged Muslim groups was fatally shot in Amman on Sunday, state news agency Petra reported.

Nahed Hattar, a member of the country's Christian minority, was shot three times outside a courthouse in the capital where charges against him were being heard.

Public Security Department personnel, who were near the scene of the attack, rushed Hattar to a nearby hospital, but he died from his injuries, Petra reported.

The security forces arrested the attacker and an investigation is underway, Petra reported.

Cartoon 'abusive to the divine entity'

Read More</s>Nahed Hattar, a member of the country's Christian minority, was shot three times outside a courthouse in the capital where charges against him were being heard.

Public Security Department personnel, who were near the scene of the attack, rushed Hattar to a nearby hospital, but he died from his injuries, Petra reported.

The security forces arrested the attacker and an investigation is underway, Petra reported.

Hattar, a political commentator and columnist, was remanded in custody last month after sharing a controversial cartoon on Facebook that sparked anger from Muslim groups. Amman Governor Khaled Abu Zeid ordered that the writer be held for the "blasphemous" Facebook post, Petra reported. Hattar was charged with the crimes of insulting religion, and inciting "sectarian strife and racism," for having posted the image, which was deemed as "abusive to the divine entity," Petra reported at the time. The cartoon, which Hattar said was intended to ridicule ISIS beliefs, depicted a bearded man in bed with two women in heaven as he instructs God to serve him wine and food. Hours after sharing the cartoon, Hattar explained on social media that it was aimed at criticizing the twisted view of paradise held by ISIS, according to Randa Habib, Amnesty International's regional director for the Middle East and North Africa. "No one listened," she tweeted after his killing Sunday. The slain writer, who was released on bail earlier this month, had been "a controversial figure because of his blunt positions and passionate ideas. His killing is a low criminal act," Habib wrote. Hattar had also attracted controversy for writing articles in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. #NahedHattar was a controversial figure because of his blunt positions and passionate ideas. His killing is a low criminal act #RIP — Randa HABIB (@RandaHabib) September 25, 2016 A gag order issued by Jordan's attorney general in August prevented coverage of the case. The Prime Minister's office in Jordan denounced the killing on its official Twitter page Sunday. Government spokesman Mohammad al-Momani said he was confident the person responsible for "this ignominious crime" would receive "just punishment." Jordan is a leading Arab member of the US-led coalition fighting ISIS in neighboring Syria and Iraq, carrying out airstrikes against the terror group and hosting coalition troops on its soil.</s>Call for justice: A protester with a picture of Jordanian writer Nahed Hattar, during a sit-in on Monday.

Jordan’s judiciary on Monday slapped a media blackout on the murder of a Christian writer who was gunned down outside an Amman court where he faced charges over an anti-Islam cartoon.

The information ministry said the aim was to preserve “the secrecy of the investigation” and that the blackout applied to both social and traditional media.

Nahed Hattar was hit by three bullets before the alleged assassin was arrested at the scene of Sunday’s shooting in Amman’s central Abdali district, official media said.

The gunman, identified as a 49-year-old Jordanian, gave himself up to police, a security source said.

A judicial source said on Sunday that the assailant was remanded for 15 days and charged with premeditated murder, meaning that he could face the death penalty if convicted. The suspect had acted alone and was not linked to any “terrorist” group, a source close to his interrogation said, asking not to be named. Hattar faced charges over a cartoon posted on his Facebook page

Also, protesters called on Monday for Jordan’s government to resign over its failure to prevent the murder.

Hattar’s family has so far refused to collect his body for burial, charging that authorities were warned of threats to his life and had failed to act.</s>Hundreds of demonstrators gathered near the Prime Minister's office after writer Nahed Hattar was shot by a former Muslim preacher on the steps of the palace of justice on Sunday. The assailant gave himself up to the police near the scene.

"No to extremism, no to violence," and "Down with the government," shouted protesters carrying pictures of the slain writer, known for his support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and extremist nationalist views.

His death has shaken a country unaccustomed to such killings and raised fears of tensions between Muslims and the minority Christians who wield political and economic influence.

Hattar was arrested last month after sharing on social media a cartoon image of a bearded man in heaven smoking in bed with women and asking God to bring him wine and clear away his dishes.

The writer was released on bail but charged with contempt of religion and inflaming religious tension under the country's strict blasphemy laws.

Family members said the government failed to provide Hattar him with protection after he was released on bail, even after he had received death threats. They have so far refused to collect his body for burial.

"We demand at the very least the dismissal of the prime minister," Khaled Hattar, the writer's brother, told Reuters at the protest.

A source familiar with the case said the gunman had told interrogators that he acted on his own.

Jordanians have condemned the killing, although the cartoon had angered many people in a majority Muslim country where Hattar was accused of disseminating hatred and mocking Islam.

Hattar was a controversial figure whose calls for depriving Jordanians of Palestinian descent their political rights had won him many enemies in a country with a large Palestinian population.

His killing, however, has worried many liberal Muslims and Christians who now fear radical Islamists may feel emboldened to take violent action against their opponents.

UK-based rights group Amnesty International on Monday said the killing "was a deplorable attack on freedom of expression", saying strict blasphemy laws should be revoked. It called on the authorities to investigate the murder.

"Jordanian authorities must make it clear that attacks against people who peacefully express their views, however unpopular, will not be tolerated," said Philip Luther, Research and Advocacy Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International in a release on Monday.
A Muslim preacher from a local mosque shoots and kills Jordanian writer and cartoonist Nahed Hattar in front of a courthouse in the capital Amman. Authorities take the gunman into custody.