San Diego Mosque Attack Victims Mourned by Over 2,000

The San Diego Mosque Attack Funeral

More than 2,000 people have gathered in a park in San Diego, California, to mourn a security guard and two other men murdered as they tried to stop this week’s attack on the city’s largest mosque.

Details of the Funeral Service

Mourners, including police officers in uniform, stood in rows for the Islamic funeral prayer, or Janazah, on Thursday. The bodies of the three men — 51-year-old Amin Abdullah, 78-year-old Mansour Kaziha, and 57-year-old Nadir Awad — lay beneath cloth, underneath a white canopy.

The Impact of the Attack

“God is the greatest,” the attendees chanted in Arabic, raising their hands. Many remembered the three men as heroes for delaying and distracting the two teenage suspects who opened fire at the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday, during school hours.

The Victims' Actions During the Attack

Police have indicated that the three victims’ actions likely prevented further bloodshed. Amin Abdullah, the centre’s security guard, engaged in a gun battle with the teenage assailants and used his radio to order a lockdown at the mosque, which houses a primary school with 140 students.

The Future Outlook

“Today is a message to everyone: Our community got hurt, but our community is standing strong and firm,” said the centre’s imam, Taha Hassane. The victims are set to be buried alongside one another later in the day at a nearby cemetery.