A Syrian boy who laid his father and older brother to rest after they were killed in the Christchurch mosque massacre expressed his sorrow at the loss of his family.
Refugees Khaled Mustafa, 44, and his high school student son Hamza, 15, were killed in the carnage at the Al Noor mosque during the gunman's alleged reign of terror, which claimed 50 lives last Friday.
Hamza's younger brother, Zahid, was also in the mosque on the day in question and was shot in the legs.
He is currently wheelchair bound, recovering from the injuries he sustained in the attack.
Jamil el-biza from the Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jamaah Association said he overheard the 13-year-old boy speaking.
'I don't want to be here alone,' Zahid said.
Zahid Mustafa (pictured) laid his father and older brother to rest after they were killed in the Christchurch mosque massacre
The first victims laid to rest were Syrian refugee Khaled Mustafa, 44, (left) and his high school student son Hamza, 15 (right)
Zahid (pictured) tried standing for prayers for his father and brother but couldn't as a result of gunshot wounds to his leg
Hamza's younger brother, Zahid (pictured), was also in the mosque on the day in question and was shot in the legs. He is currently wheelchair bound, recovering from the injuries he sustained in the attack
'To hear him say to his father "I don't want want to be alone", that was devastating,' Mr el-Biza said.
Zahid tried standing for prayers for his father and brother but couldn't as a result of gunshot wounds to his leg.
'Even when he was given condolences, we tried not shake his hands and lift his hand and not touch his foot because they're still wounded, but he refused - he wanted to shake everyone's hand.'
The refugee family moved to New Zealand last year, finally settling in a safe haven after fleeing Syria and spending time in Jordan.
The first victims of the Christchurch massacre - Syrian refugee Khaled Mustafa, 44, and son Hamza, 15, have been laid to rest
Mourners console each other before the first funerals for the victims of last Friday's terrorist attack in Christchurch
The talented farrier father and his son, a student at Cashmere High School, were buried next to one another at plots 87 and 88.
Young Hamza called his mother from the mosque after the shooting began.
Salwa Mustafa told Stuff that he said, 'mum, there's someone coming into the mosque and he's shooting us'.
He was with Zahid, who had been shot in the leg, at the time.
Three to four hundred men, women and children attended the service, with a special area set up for mourners to wash their hands and feet and two little boys playing tag during the funeral prayers.
The bodies arrived in a procession of more than a dozen cars about 12.30pm. There was complete silence on the grounds. The janaza, or funeral prayers, began shortly thereafter, with the words 'allahu akbar' (god is the greatest)
