World’s First Openly Gay Imam, Muhsin Hendricks, Shot Dead in South Africa

Muhsin Hendricks, widely regarded as the world’s first openly gay imam, was shot and killed in South Africa, according to reports on Sunday.

The imam, who led a mosque providing a safe space for LGBTQ and marginalized Muslims, was in a car with another person when a vehicle blocked their exit in Gqeberha.

“Two unknown suspects with covered faces got out of the vehicle and started firing multiple shots at the vehicle,” police said in a statement.

Hendricks, who was seated in the back, was fatally shot before the attackers fled the scene. A police spokeswoman confirmed the authenticity of a social media video that appeared to show the targeted killing in Bethelsdorp, near Gqeberha.

Authorities have not yet determined a motive and have urged anyone with information to come forward.

Hendricks, a prominent LGBTQ advocate, came out as gay in 1996 and ran the Al-Ghurbaah mosque in Wynberg near Cape Town, where he was born.