Muhsin Hendricks, considered the world\u2019s first openly gay imam, was shot dead Saturday near the southern city of Gqeberha, South African police said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The imam, who ran a mosque intended as a safe haven for gay and other marginalised Muslims, was in a car with another person when a vehicle stopped in front of them and blocked their exit, police said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTwo unknown suspects with covered faces got out of the vehicle and started firing multiple shots at the vehicle,\u201d the Eastern Cape force said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThereafter they fled the scene, and the driver noticed that Hendricks, who was seated at the back of the vehicle was shot and killed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP the authenticity of a video on social media that purported to show a targeted killing in Bethelsdorp near Gqeberha, formerly known as Port Elizabeth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe motive for the murder is unknown and forms part of the ongoing investigation,\u201d police said, urging anybody with information to come forward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association denounced the killing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe ILGA World family is in deep shock at the news of the murder of Muhsin Hendricks, and calls on authorities to thoroughly investigate what we fear may be a hate crime,\u201d executive director Julia Ehrt said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hendricks, involved in various LGBTQ advocacy groups, came out as gay in 1996. He ran the Al-Ghurbaah mosque at Wynberg near his birthplace Cape Town.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The mosque provides \u201ca safe space in which queer Muslims and marginalised women can practise Islam\u201d, its website states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hendricks, the subject of a 2022 documentary called \u201cThe Radical\u201d, had previously alluded to threats against him.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But he insisted that \u201cthe need to be authentic\u201d was \u201cgreater than the fear to die\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
South Africa has one of the world\u2019s highest murder rates, with some 28,000 murders in the year to February 2024, according to police data.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"