Israeli student Aiia Maasarwe, who was raped and killed in Australia, mourned by thousands at funeral in her hometown
- The student was attacked while she was talking to her sister on the phone on the way home from a show
- Australian police have charged a 20-year-old suspect
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Thousands of mourners attended the funeral on Wednesday of Aya Maasarwe, an Arab Israeli student killed in Australia, in her hometown in northern Israel.
The 21-year-old was raped and murdered in Melbourne shortly after midnight last Wednesday when she was on her way home from a comedy show. Her body was found by passers-by in bushes near a tram stop.
Police in Australia, who have described the attack as “horrific”, have arrested and charged a suspect, 20-year-old Codey Herrmann, with her rape and murder.
The murder of Maasarwe, who had been studying in Australia for a year, shocked the country and sparked a huge outpouring of grief that saw thousands attend vigils in her memory.
“I appreciate the support of all these people, in the whole world and also in my town,” said her father, Saeed Maasarwe, with Australia’s ambassador to Israel, Chris Cannan, by his side.
‘Horrific attack’: Israeli student murdered in Australia while on phone with sister
Thousands of people gathered in silence at Baqa al-Gharbiya, a town with a Muslim majority, as mourners carried the coffin containing Maasarwe’s body to her family home. The only sound that could be heard was of Muslim prayers from loudspeakers.
Youths marching in a procession held up black banners that read: “It’s time to say: stop killing women” and “Women have the right to live in peace” in both Arabic and English.
A crowd of mourners then followed Maasarwe’s coffin as it was taken to the Al-Sarat mosque and cemetery where she was laid to rest.
Friends and neighbours carried flowers and Arabic signs saying “your beautiful soul will not be forgotten”. They huddled and prayed as her family lowered Maasarwe’s coffin into the ground.
“She was a special girl from all aspects, it’s very hard to describe her in words,” said her uncle, Jamil Maasarwe.
Hours earlier, the town’s mayor, Khaled Abu Mukh, and Israeli Arab MP Ahmad Tibi accompanied Maasarwe’s father as her coffin arrived at the airport.
In a video posted on social media, Tibi said Maasarwe was now the daughter of all Arab Israelis.
Australian police arrest man after death of Israeli student Aiia Maasarwe
Maasarwe, a 21-year-old exchange student at La Trobe University in Melbourne, was returning home from a night out when she was killed in what appears to have been a random attack.
She was speaking to her younger sister in Israel via FaceTime when the assault occurred, police said.
Her family said Maasarwe had decided to study in Australia because of its reputation for safety.
“I mean, that’s unbelievable, how could something like this happen to someone like Aiia,” said a cousin, Baker Maasarwe.
Maasarwe’s father flew to Australia to identify his daughter’s body and bring it home after a passer-by stumbled upon it near the tram station where she was killed.
