Some See Extreme 'Anti-Theism' As Motive In N.C. Killings [View all]

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This image provided by the Durham County Sheriff's Office shows a booking photo of Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, who was arrested on three counts of murder early Wednesday. On his Facebook page, Hicks described himself as a gun-toting atheist. (Durham County Sheriff's Office/AP)

February 15, 2015 9:23 AM ET
Tom Gjelten

Outrage over the murder of three young Muslim Americans in North Carolina last week has gone international. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation said Saturday that the killings reflected "Islamophobia" and "bear the symptoms of a hate crime," but local authorities say they don't yet know what motivated the murders.

The man held responsible for the killings is an avowed atheist. Whether that's relevant in this case is not clear, but some experts see a new extremism developing among some atheists.

The North Carolina killings have unnerved U.S. Muslims in large part because the victims, Deah Shaddy Barakat, his wife Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha and her sister Razan, were model Muslim Americans, devoted to public service, with friends throughout their community.

The guest worship leader this past Friday at the Dar al-Noor mosque in northern Virginia was Dr. Esam Omeish, a prominent lay Muslim leader in the D.C. area.

http://www.npr.org/2015/02/15/386406810/some-see-extreme-anti-theism-as-motive-in-n-c-killings

4:05 audio at link.