News this morning of the murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, gunned down last night in Amsterdam.
Police reports said van Gogh was stabbed and then shot dead by an unnamed assailant near the Oosterpark in east Amsterdam. The killer then engaged police in a shootout before being wounded and arrested.
The great-grandson of the famous painter’s brother, van Gogh was a controversial figure in The Netherlands and had received a number of death threats recently after his English-language film Submission was broadcast on Dutch TV in August. The film was a critical portrayal of the treatment of women under Islam.
– BBC News | Europe | Gunman kills Dutch film director
– mlive.com | Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh murdered
– Amsterdam Police report (in Dutch)
– Internet Movie database entry
Shame… the western world is ultimately trying to understand.
It’s certainly caused shock throughout The Netherlands, th0m. Overshadowed all media reporting about the US elections.
Raises all sorts of questions in a country where people who follow Islam number more than 5% of the population, with a big concentration in Amsterdam. I do hope it doesn’t generate xenophobic displays from extreme groups.
High-profile murders, for whatever motive, are happening too frequently here these days – this isn’t the first this year.