The world continues to mourn for the terrible assassination of Bertha Caceres this past Thursday. Th

One of Honduras's most celebrated human rights activists has been murdered by gunmen who stormed her home and shot her dead.

Berta Caceres, a mother of four, was recognised internationally for her campaigns – in particular for her work on indigenous rights and environmental causes. She was killed on Thursday morning in La Esperanza, a town in the Intibucá district, 150 miles from the capital Tegucigalpa. The next day she would have turned 44.

Soldiers protect the house where Honduran environmentalist Berta Caceres was murdered, in La Esperanza.

Leonardo DiCaprio, who used his Oscar-winners' speech on Sunday to call for environmental activism, said: "Incredibly sad news from Honduras this morning. We should all honour the brave contribution of Caceres."

On Instagram, he wrote: "The world has lost an incredible leader. We should all honour the brave contribution of Caceres – ecologist, humanitarian and inspiration for all." The world has lost an incredible indigenous leader. We should all honor the brave contributions of Cáceres – environmentalist, humanitarian and inspiration to all.#Regram @FordFoundation: Honduran indigenous leader, Goldman Environmental Prize winner, and our grantee Berta Caceres (pictured above) was assassinated last night at her home. Indigenous communities are targeted, killed for their work fighting for their land and the environment. Berta was a warrior for justice who refused to take the safe road.

Ms Caceres said she knew her work was risky.

"I fear for my life," she said in an interview with El Universo newspaper in July. "Honduras is a country of total impunity. No one cares if they kill us.

"It's not that we want to be Rambo, but this is a vital fight for our ecosystem, for our home."

In neighbouring Guatemala and in the United States protests against her murder sprang up. Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan president, expressed Venezuela's solidarity with "the people of Honduras in their moment of pain for the assassination of Berta Caceres."

Relatives and friends carry the coffin of murdered indigenous activist Berta Caceres Photo: ORLANDO SIERRA

Ms Caceres was well known for her fearless fight in what is one of the most murderous countries in the world. In 2015, she was awarded the Goldman Prize, one of the most prestigious awards for grass-roots environmentalism.

The judges said she had "rallied the indigenous Lenca people of Honduras and waged a grass roots campaign that successfully pressured the world's largest dam builder to pull out of the Agua Zarca Dam".

The dam would have flooded large areas of land and cut off the supply of water, food and medicine for hundreds of Lenca people. Ms Caceres was herself a Lenca, and in 1993 was one of the founders of the National Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH).

The prize committee said they were devastated at the death of "a fearless environmental hero".

Her mother, Berta Flores, told TV Globo that police were investigating the possibility that she was killed in a bungled robbery.

"But we all know it was a result of her fight," Mrs Flores said.

She added that her daughter recently travelled to the site of another proposed dam, on the Gualcarque river, and had "a very serious altercation with the soldiers and the owners of the dam construction company."

Ms Caceres had received death threats previously. But police told Honduran newspaper La Prensa they did not know she was living in that district of La Esperanza, as she only moved there two months ago.

"We were protecting her old home at Villa El Calvario, but she had not reported this new house to authorities," said Sergio Paz Bueso, police commissioner in La Esperanza.

Annie Bird, who supported Ms Caceres' actions for more than a decade, said her murder will have a chilling effect on other activists.

"It sends a very strong message," she said. "And it makes everybody feel very vulnerable."

Her nephew Silvio Carillo said she knew her activism was risky.

"They were waiting for the chance to get to her," he told NPR.

"They were just waiting and she knew it was going to happen. We all knew but we didn't dissuade her because we believe in this too."

He said no one expected her killers to be caught and face justice.

"But what I do see is people being inspired to speak up and to push forth and to stand up and say we can't do this anymore.

"We can't have this happen any more."

Pablo Marin- The Mariana DAngelo Editorial Group