AMSTERDAM, Nov 2: Dutch film maker Theo van Gogh, who recently made a controversial short film about women and Islamic culture, was shot and stabbed to death on an Amsterdam street on Tuesday, police said.

Police arrested the gunman after the attack, in which a second man was wounded.

His film "Submission" about Islam and women caused an uproar in the Dutch Muslim community because it featured four abused women in see-through robes showing their bodies inscribed with verses of the Holy Quran. After the film was shown on Dutch television a few months ago Van Gogh received police protection.

Van Gogh was stabbed and shot around 9 am local time on the streets of Amsterdam, police spokeswoman Elly Florax told public Radio 1. A second man was also wounded in the attack. His identity was not known.

Eyewitnesses said the shooter left a letter with Van Gogh but police said they were still investigating this report.-AFP