Dubai: Thousands of mourners stood quietly when the coffin carrying Shaikh Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum's body was brought to the Zabeel mosque for funeral prayers yesterday.
Many were crying, many others were in a state of shock. The crowd comprised UAE nationals and a large number of expatriates who had come to pay their last respects to a leader they described as "kind, generous and helpful".
At 11.40am the cortege led by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, pulled up beside the mosque.
The ambulance doors opened, and pallbearers then slowly carried the open coffin bearing the remains of the leader, inside the mosque. Lined up on blue carpets on the courtyard, mourners, numbering about 5,000, bowed their heads reverently.
Shaikhs, dignitaries, diplomats and delegates from Arab and Asian countries gathered inside the mosque, while others were seated at the spacious courtyard of the mosque.
Mourners read verses from the Holy Quran and prayed to God to bless Shaikh Maktoum's soul.
A few minutes later, the imam of the mosque made the call to prayer.
The congregation lifted their hands to their ears as the Takbir was said, and with a final invocation of "Peace Be Upon You", the funeral prayer was over.
Thereafter, the mourners rushed to their cars to follow the ambulance on its journey towards the Umm Hurair cemetery, a few kilometres away overlooking the Creek.
A fleet of buses was organised to help transport dignitaries to the Umm Hurair cemetery.
On his way back, Saif Thani, a UAE national, said, "The whole nation is crying for him today. The late Shaikh Maktoum meant everything to us. I cannot express my feelings. May God bless his soul".
Abid Khan, a 37-year-old Pakistani businessman, said, "We loved him a lot because he was a true and sincere leader towards his people, and the Muslim nation".
Khan said he waited for five hours to attend the funeral prayer.
His 55-year-old compatriot Sabghatu Allah, said, "Shaikh Maktoum was an honourable leader. We feel very sad at his demise."
