Imam known for LGBTQ advocacy killed in targeted shooting

Muhsin Hendricks, considered the world’s first openly gay imam, was shot dead on Saturday near the southern city of Gqeberha, South African police said.

Hendricks, who ran a mosque intended as a safe haven for gay and other marginalized Muslims, was in a car with another person when a vehicle stopped in front of them, blocking their exit, police reported.

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

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“Thereafter, they fled the scene, and the driver noticed that Hendricks, who was seated at the back of the vehicle, was shot and killed.”

A police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP the authenticity of a video circulating on social media, which appeared to show a targeted killing in Bethelsdorp, near Gqeberha, formerly known as Port Elizabeth.

Investigation underway, motive still unknown

“The motive for the murder is unknown and forms part of the ongoing investigation,” police said, urging anyone with information to come forward.

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The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association (ILGA) denounced the killing. “The 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,” said executive director Julia Ehrt in a statement.

A legacy of activism

Muhsin Hendricks, who came out as gay in 1996, was involved in various LGBTQ advocacy groups. He ran the Al-Ghurbaah mosque in Wynberg, near his birthplace of Cape Town.

According to its website, the mosque provides “a safe space in which queer Muslims and marginalized women can practice Islam.”

Hendricks was also the subject of a 2022 documentary titled The Radical. He had previously spoken about threats against him but insisted that “the need to be authentic” was “greater than the fear to die.”

Rising violence in South Africa

South Africa has one of the world’s highest murder rates, with approximately 28,000 murders recorded in the year leading up to February 2024, according to police data.