Thousands of mourners have come together for an outpouring of grief at the funeral of murdered Israeli student Aiia Maasarwe.
The 21-year-old’s body arrived in her home town of Baqa al-Gharbiya, in northern Israel, only hours before the ceremony commemorating her life was to be held at the local mosque on Wednesday afternoon local time.
But following a burial, condolences in a nearby mourning hall were interrupted when Aiia’s family silenced the Palestinian President’s envoys, concerned they were politicising the event.
Thousands of mourners have come together for an outpouring of grief at the funeral of murdered Israeli student Aiia Maasarwe (pictured)
Aiia’s father Saeed (centre in blue) spoke at the ceremony, thanking the public for huge attendance at his daughter’s funeral
Ms Maasarwe’s sudden and tragic death shocked her tight-knit community, a densely populated area of about 30,000 people
Some wore black t-shirts with Arabic translating to ‘Eternal life, Aiia’. Pictured are mourners at Aiia’s final resting place
The gathering in the local mourning hall followed a procession, a mosque service and cemetery burial.
Thousands of people flooded the streets to escort Aiia’s coffin to her final resting place.
Teenagers from the community were seen following the light wood casket through the town displaying banners with heartfelt messages.
One of the banners thanked the Australian Arabic Community for their solidarity.
Students at Aiia’s school were seen wearing shirts that read her name in Arabic. A billboard with Aiia’s smiling face was also erected in her honour. It reads: ‘To the gardens of God.’
Aiia’s family were strong in presence throughout the day’s proceedings, with father Saeed thanking the community for the large attendance.
Aiia’s mother Khitam did not want to talk, but during an emotional drive home after the funeral, the father told Daily Mail Australia of her pain and how devastated his other three daughters are feeling.
‘She’s strong but inside her pain is enormous,’ he said of his wife.
‘It’s very hard for my daughters as they were very close to her. They have not only lost a sister, but also a friend.’
He said that he had a trip planned to Australia to see his daughter, but instead ended up collecting her body after she was allegedly raped and murdered while walking to her student accommodation in Melbourne last week.
He took comfort from the big turnout for the funeral, and commented: ‘When I saw all the people who came to take her to her resting place it felt good, appropriate, and helped me to feel a little better.’
Reflecting on the day he said: ‘You follow the steps, one, two, three, four, and we’ve taken her to where she should be. I hope she’s now in paradise.’
Aiia’s impact on the local community was palpable, as droves of tearful locals attending the mosque to pay their respects.
Aiia’s body landed in her home town only hours before the ceremony, with her father Saeed travelling with her from Melbourne
The murder sent shockwaves through Israel’s Arab 1.7 million-strong community, and parliament member Ahmed Tibi said: ‘Aya was the daughter of Saeed, and now she’s the daughter of all of us’
There was a brief interruption at the funeral when Aiia’s cousin Sharef denied the microphone to an envoy for the Palestinian President, concerned he would politicise the event
Her impact on the local community where she was raised was palpable, with droves of tearful locals attending the mosque to pay their respects.
Many dressed in black and hooked small flags on their cars. Some wore t-shirts with Arabic writing reading: ‘Eternal life, Aiia.’
Her family has friends from various communities in Israel, and some mourners attending wore Jewish skullcaps.
The murder sent shockwaves through Israel’s Arab 1.7 million-strong community, and parliament member Ahmed Tibi said: ‘Aya was the daughter of Saeed, and now she’s the daughter of all of us.’
But the speeches at the hall were not without controversy, when Maasarwe’s first cousin took the microphone from an envoy to the Palestinian President, saying he won’t tolerate the ‘twisting’ of the tragedy into a political matter.
Hundreds of people were waiting for a Palestinian official to read a statement from President Mahmoud Abbas when Sharef Maasarwe declared: ‘We, as a family, say this is not about politics.’
The Palestinian representatives quickly left the hall and complained loudly, before gathering media so he could read their statement in the open air.
Altayeeb Ghauayen, spokesman for the local council, told Daily Mail Australia: ‘They felt humiliated.’
Hundreds of mourners attended the funeral for Aiia Maasarwe inside the mosque (pictured) in her Israeli hometown
Family and friends of murdered Israeli student Aiia Maasarwe remain mired in grief following the 21-year-old’s funeral
Thousands of people marched through the street as her body was carried to the local mosque, where prayers were recited
The student was killed in Melbourne’s northern suburb of Bundoora last week as she walked home from a comedy show, leaving her hometown distraught
As the Palestinian delegation was complaining, Sharef told Daily Mail Australia: ‘To take this situation of a horrific act done to a family by somebody towards a political and self-interest agenda is very inappropriate.’
The mourners had been bracing themselves for a long string of speeches, as Palestinian representatives showed up in large numbers, as did Israeli-Arab politicians who are fighting an election campaign.
But Sharef, acting on instructions of Aiia’s grieving father Saeed, intervened, and shifted the focus to thanking everyone who has supported the family — Israelis and Australians, Jews and Arabs.
Among mourners, there was widespread praise for the way that the Australian public and authorities responded to the tragedy. The mayor of the town, Mursi Abu Mokh, asked the Australian Ambassador Chris Cannan to send ‘lots of regards to the Prime Minister of Australia and the people of Australia.’
Cannan read a statement on behalf of Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
‘The goodness of her life stands in contrast with the darkness that took it,’ he said.
‘The Australian people are grateful that Aiia chose to live and share her rich life amongst us, and we are heartbroken that such a despicable crime could occur.
‘We are asking, ‘what must we do to stop it happening ever again?”
While the Israeli President’s office has comforted the family, the Prime Minister’s office has not, prompting criticism from some Israeli Arabs.
Politician Mohammad Barakeh said in the mourning hall, before speeches were stopped: ‘We could have expected a message from the Prime Minister.’
He suggested that Benjamin Netanyahu learns from the Australian government.
An ornate blanket covers the light wood casket carrying Aiia, as mourners make their way towards their local mosque
In front of her family home, a message reading ‘stop cutting our flowers’ was displayed. The family said the message is a plea for violence against young women to come to an end. Pictured are tearful mourners at Aiia’s funeral ceremony
Aiia (pictured) was killed on her way back to her student accommodation from a comedy club in Melbourne’s north last week
Aiia was killed in Melbourne’s northern suburb of Bundoora last week after leaving a comedy club. She had been on the phone to her sister at the time, who says she heard her scream.
The 21-year-old had only been living in the city for six months following a move from Shanghai.
Her body was found by a passer-by the next morning in the suburb of Bundoora, a short distance from where she studied language at La Trobe University.
Codey Herrman, 20, was arrested and charged in relation to the murder on Friday. He has been remanded in custody and will reappear in court in June.
Ms Maasarwe’s sudden and tragic death shocked her tight-knit community, a densely populated area of about 30,000 people, who had hung black banners across the town in the days before reading: ‘God have mercy on Aiia.’
Teenagers hold banners with Arabic writing. The banner on the right reads: ‘Killing the dream, killing education, killing ambition, killing humanity’
The man charged with her murder, 20-year-old Codey Herrman (pictured), will reappear in court in June this year
A billboard along the streets of Baqa al-Gharbiya, erected in Aiia’s honour, reading: ‘To the gardens of God’
Women cry as Aiia’s body is carried through the streets to the local mosque, where a prayer service was held
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