Gunmen kill chairman of Council of Imam and Preachers of Kenya Mohammed Idris

MOMBASA COUNTY: Unknown gunmen Tuesday morning shot and killed the Council of Imam and Preachers of Kenya (CIPK) chairman Sheikh Mohammed Idris in Likoni, Mombasa.

Idris was also the chairman of Sakina Mosque in Mombasa that was recently taken over by radical youths. Police say the body of the victim was moved to the Pandya Hospital mortuary.

Police say they are yet to know the killers amid tension in the area. He was shot dead as he left a local mosque. Idris had been expressing fears for his life after the radical youths threatened him and his group. Witnesses said he was shot near his home.

Mombasa CID boss Henry Ondieki said they suspect Sheikh Idris was killed by people who knew him well.

“This is murder and we are investigating it because it seems the attackers trailed him for long before striking,” said Ondieki.

He had months ago termed a meeting of youths at Sakina Mosque as Jihad convention.

"We are aware the radical youths had converged for jihad meeting with bad intention for the country," Idris said then.

The cleric then urged the police to deal decisively with radicalized Muslim youths causing violence in the name of Islam in Mombasa. This angered many youths who termed him a traitor.

Idris opposed the alleged "Jihad teaching" saying they are being misinterpreted by the youths.

Idris always urged the government to arrest the key financiers and radical preachers using innocent youths for their own interest, saying Islam religion is peaceful and does not propagate for violence.

Mombasa, the country's second largest city and a major tourist spot, is one of various cities targeted by a series of grenade and improvised explosive devise attacks in recent months.