U.S. pastor Josh Sullivan, abducted at gunpoint in South Africa, rescued in shootout, authorities say

Josh Sullivan, a U.S. pastor abducted at gunpoint while delivering a sermon in his church in South Africa Thursday evening has been rescued in a shootout that left three suspected dead, authorities say.

According to a statement issued by the “Hawks” — a specialized police unit that investigates serious crimes — Sullivan, 45, was abducted at the Fellowship Baptist Church in Motherwell Township outside the coastal city of Gqeberha and was being held in a safehouse in that city.

The Hawks say numerous police agencies acting on tips went to the house and they saw a vehicle. Suspects in the vehicle tried to flee, opening fire on the officers as they did and “the officers responded with tactical precision, leading to a high-intensity shootout” in which the three suspects were killed.

Sullivan was found in the vehicle “miraculously unharmed,” the statement says, adding that he was “immediately assessed by medical personnel and is currently in an excellent condition.”