Like most Jordanians, I was deeply shocked by the heinous crime that was committed in cold blood last Sunday against a Jordanian citizen, writer and activist Nahed Hattar.

Outrage was instantly expressed by all sectors of the Jordanian society. The atrocity was widely condemned as a hate crime that is alien to our tradition, the harmony of the Jordanian society and the diversity of our culture.

This land has for centuries been uniquely distinguished as hospitable and safe for people of various origins, followers of different faiths and adherers to diverse cultures. 

Hate language, incitement, exclusion, bias and prejudice are the perfect ingredients for incubating terror. But terror, once it takes root in any society, turns into the perfect environment for inducing far more lethal forms of social malignancies and communal rifts. 

The tragic loss is unquestionably great. Not only for the immediate family of the prominent victim of betrayal, cowardice, deceit and treachery, but for all the Jordanians. 

While profoundly sharing the grief, and as we feel the pain of the Hattar family, we believe that the sick minds that planned the crime were aiming at larger targets that include our peace, our social harmony as well as the unparallelled togetherness that has been a solid feature of the Jordanian people.

There were previous attempts to divide us, destabilise our national unity and stir sectarian rifts by numerous means. 

If much of that had failed to cause any cracks in our solidarity and our national integrity, it seems violence is an upgrade of the vicious, divisive and destructive extremist tactics targeting all of us.

Hattar is not the first victim of a brutal crime driven by hatred, ignorance, fanaticism and sick-minded villainy in Jordan. Most sadly he may not be the last either.

This country has always been on the extremists’ hit lists. Many of our best men have fallen before. But not once did such vicious attempts shake our unity. 

As a matter of fact, every outrageous try has only brought us closer to each other, sharpening our resolve never to submit to intimidation or bend before violent terror, no matter how painful our losses could be.

As a prominent writer and commentator, some of Hattar’s ideas were indeed controversial. That applies to many others, too. 

There are rules in every democracy that define the lines between the appropriate practice of one’s right to “freedom of expression” and incursions on the law, or treading on ground deemed sensitive to the public, particularly religion. 

But any such incursions should always be dealt with in accordance with the provisions of the law in law courts. 

No individual or group has the right to take the law into his hands. 

It seems very likely that because Hattar was embroiled in such a controversy that he became the target of extremists’ sectarian incitement.

The perpetrators must have believed that the assassination would drive a wedge between the Jordanians. It did not.

All Muslim organisations, groups and official bodies deplored the crime, emphasising that Islamic faith and Islamic values reject such murderous behaviour in no unclear terms.

As a matter of fact, the barbarity has united all Jordanians in rejecting and in condemning this unprecedented attack, not only on the victim but on the freedom of every Jordanian.

And yet, it raised a much louder alarm: that the conspiracy against our peace and national unity is by no means retreating. Rather, it seems relentless and ever more determined.

Apparently, there seems to be a lot of invisible incitement and indoctrination taking advantage of ignorance, naiveté, marginalisation, poverty, frustration and maybe other phenomena we have yet to uncover. But we must intensify the search for such dark pockets.

Some of the abrasive, cruel, inhuman and senseless comments on the crime on social media were really appalling, indeed alarming. They should be traced and dealt with before they spread and grow.

Let us hope the investigation, currently under way, into this ugly assassination will reveal useful information for enhanced preventive measures. 

It is a long way to go. The battle against evil and dark-mindedness is going to be tough. The lesson of this tragedy must be heeded.