Muhiyidin d'Baha: Black Lives Matter activist who tore down Confederate flag on live TV shot dead

A Black Lives Matter activist who went viral last year after grabbing at a Confederate flag during a live news broadcast has been shot dead in New Orleans.

Muhiyidin d'Baha was taken to hospital with gunshot wounds on Monday (5 February) but died from excessive blood loss, his niece, Camille Weaver, said.

Further details surrounding the shooting are not known but his family said they would release more information when it became available.

D'Baha is best known for the viral moment in February 2017 when he jumped through police tape to remove a Confederate flag which was being waved during a speech by fellow activist Bree Newsome at the College of Charleston.

After the clip of the incident was seen around the world, d'Baha told the Washington Post that he decided to take action after "seeing fear" in the eyes of some elderly people who were with him at the speech.

He added: "And I saw them back up, almost. That was the moment for me. We're not going to pass this on to another generation. Not another generation of people are going to be intimidated by this flag."

He was charged with disorderly conduct and malicious injury to property.

The incident stemmed from ongoing calls for the Confederate flag to be removed from state grounds in the wake of the shooting of black worshippers at a church in Charleston. Nine people died and there were protests across the US on both sides of the argument.

The killer, white supremacist Dylann Roof, was linked to an online manifesto calling for a "race war" and had been photographed posing with the flag.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for a funeral service for d'Baha. In a statement on the fundraising page, Weaver said: "My name is Camille and I am the niece of Muhiyidin D'baha (or Moya as many of us knew him). On 2/5/18 around 1:00am, Moya was shot.

"He was taken to the hospital in critical condition. Around 9-9:30am we received a phone call saying that he had died due to excessive blood loss. We don't have many details, but will update as soon as we do.

"His body is currently in New Orleans and we are raising money to bring him home to Charleston and then have a memorial service/funeral for his family and friends. This is all so unexpected, so any contribution will help."