In a deeply distressing homophobic incident that took place in Senegal, West Africa, the remains of a man were unearthed and publicly set ablaze when it was discovered by the locals that he identified as gay.
According to The Metro News, four suspected masterminds of the gruesome act were arrested on Monday, even though images from the scene show a crowd of hundreds gathering around the fire. The 31-year-old man, named locally as Cheikh Fall, was buried in Leona Niassene cemetery in the central Senegalese town of Kaolack on Friday evening.
According to local media, his family had tried to arrange a burial in nearby Touba, which is the holy city of the Islamic Mouride brotherhood, but authorities refused to bury the man in his hometown because he was gay.
Later, his family buried him in secret at a nearby cemetery. However, his body was exhumed and set on fire by a large crowd 24 hours later. The incident has sparked outrage in Senegal, despite the prevalence of anti-LGBTQ+ attitudes in the country.
According to the Senegalese newspaper Le Quotidien, the bodies exhumed and burned by individuals in Kaolack on Saturday evening continue to provoke reactions. The Caliph General of Leona Niassene, the locality where this barbaric act was committed, expressed his "deep indignation" in a press release.
In the same vein, the religious leader condemned "the reprehensible act which was committed against an individual for whom we have no responsibility for his private life".
He insisted: "This act can in no way be justified or tolerated." In addition, Serigne Cheikh Tidiane Niass wanted to inform "national and international opinion that Leona Niassene is neither directly nor remotely involved in this odious act".
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