Mucaad Ibrahim’s grieving family reveal what happened to him inside the Al Noor mosque

Mucaad Ibrahim has become the face of the Christchurch attack. His grieving family have revealed what happened in his final minutes at the mosque. WARNING: Graphic

WARNING: Graphic content may upset some readers

Exclusive: What happened to the little Mucaad was so despicable that in the mind of his family it doesn’t matter what sentence a judge might pass on his killer. They know he will face eternal damnation.

Mucaad, aged three and soon to turn four, was sitting on his father’s lap in the Al Noor mosque last Friday. According to accounts from four family members given to News Corp, Mucaad — pronounced “Mu’ad” — had been his usual happy and helpful self, handing out the Koran to the adults.

He then kissed his father, Aden, 60, on the cheek as they listened to the Imam.

That was when the killer entered the mosque. Mucaad was shot in the chest. Others close by fell dead on top of Mucaad’s father.

Aden felt the blood of his son, and others, washing over him. Aden was sure his son was dead. He lay there holding his boy, pretending to be dead, as the shooter rampaged through the mosque.

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Mucaad Ibrahim who was killed along with his father during the Christchurch Mosque shootings. Picture: Supplied by family

Mucaad Ibrahim was attending Friday prayers with his father and older brother Abdi Ibrahim (pictured right) when a gunman stormed the Al Noor mosque. Picture: Supplied

Then Mucaad moved. He said, “Daddy, daddy.” The family says the shooter heard or saw the movement. And then came back and shot Mucaad in the head.

“The sad part of it is that after the first shot he was still alive,” says Luul Ibrahim, 31, Mucaad’s sister. “Why did he shoot him a second time? He took that as a joke. The joke is on him. Nobody knows who he is. Mucaad has left a legacy of love.”

Mucaad’s older sister, Khadra, 36, says her father then passed out due to shock. “After the shooting had stopped and help arrived the only thing my father could do was to accept it and put his arms around little Mucaad and kiss him so that he knows daddy was with him.

“When the shooting stopped, Aden carried his dead son out of the mosque.”

Mucaad was laid to rest yesterday in Christchurch, his home town.

Mucaad Ibrahim who was killed along with his father during the Christchurch Mosque shootings. New Zealand. Picture: Supplied by family

Mucaad Ibrahim was with his father and brother. Picture: Supplied

“Dad will never forget how Mucaad kissed him, the last kiss he had,” says Luul, who flew to Christchurch from Perth to be with her family.

The Ibrahim family is one of two parts. They fled from Somalia to Kenya in 1991. There were eight of them — mum, dad and three boys and three girls. They spent years in a refugee camp where their mother died.

“We were accepted under United Nations and New Zealand accepted us and gave us a home to lead a better life,” says Khadra.

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His siblings Abadirachman Ibrahim, Luul Ibrahim and Abdifatah Ibrahim on the evening before they buried their little brother. Picture Gary Ramage

After 13 years, Aden remarried to Ibada and they had another six children, including Mucaad, the youngest. But all of them regarded themselves as one large family. Some of the older children, such as Khadra and Luul, moved to Australia and only ever knew Mucaad from Facetime and Viber chats.

But the majority of the kids stayed in New Zealand and had Mucaad as part of their daily life. One was Abdirahman Ibrahim, 29. “I brought my little brother to the mosque that day,” he says.

Mucaad Ibrahim in happier times in New Zealand. Picture: Supplied by family

Three-year-old Mucaad Ibrahim, the youngest victim of the mass shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand, is carried to his final resting place by family members. Picture Gary Ramage

In their family group last Friday was dad, two brothers, two close relatives and Mucaad, who had participated in the “Wudu”, the washing ritual of the hands, feet and head to be in a state of purity before prayer. Mucaad liked this process; it made him feel grown up.

Abdirahman does not want to think too much about what happened in the mosque, but to remember Mucaad for who he was. “He used to play with his iPad and laugh a lot,” says Abdirahman.

Another brother, Abdifatah, says his little brother now stands for something. “There are monsters out there who want to divide and separate,” he says.

“While that man tries to tear up the whole world, my little brother represents what the value of a life is. I definitely feel there’s been a huge shift to the positive because of this. We have seen such a lot of love and caring.”

A small boy on his fathers shoulder's at a mass Friday prayer opposite the Al Noor Mosque, in Christchurch. This was New Zealand worst ever mass shooting event. Picture Gary Ramage

When the bodies arrive at the cemetery, the funerals — such as Mucaad’s — happen very quickly, all over in less than 20 minutes.

Abdifatah explains: “We know what’s coming next and we know he’s in paradise, guaranteed. That’s why the funeral process is short. He’s full of peace. He’s pure. He’s an angel.”

For those who haven’t made their peace with Allah or committed grave sins, there is one destination. “Eternal hell,” says Abdifatah.

Luul says her little brother was a “friendly, happy little child”. The family is taking it slowly, and they’re not sure they have fully comprehended it yet. “We’re in a state of shock. Maybe later we’ll start to grieve.”

Mucaad Ibrahim is pictured here with his older brother Abdallah who was at school at the time of the shooting. Picture: Supplied by family

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern meets with first responders to the mass killings at the Majid Al Noor and Linwood Islamic Centre in Christchurch, New Zealand. Picture: AAP

Abdifatah says he sees himself as a “Muslim-Somali-Kiwi”. When he arrived here as a four-year-old, he says the family had to struggle for its place but “it wasn’t so bad. The people here helped us. I’ve only known the Kiwi life and values.”

Mucaad was to be the next generation, born and bred. He should not have had to fight for his place — but it turns out he did.

The family knows Mucaad has become the international face of the Christchurch atrocity, because he is the ultimate representation of innocence and helplessness against a man clouded with hatred.

They hope his death will help the world look at Muslims in a softer light.

Originally published as Mucaad Ibrahim’s grieving family reveal what happened to him inside the Al Noor mosque