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Leicester house fire deaths: Thousands attend service | Leicester house fire deaths: Thousands attend service |
(34 minutes later) | |
Thousands of mourners have attended a prayer service for a mother and her three children who perished in a house fire in Leicester. | Thousands of mourners have attended a prayer service for a mother and her three children who perished in a house fire in Leicester. |
Shehnila Taufiq, 47, her daughter Zainab, 19, and two sons, Bilal, 17, and 15-year-old Jamal, died after their home was set alight on 13 September. | Shehnila Taufiq, 47, her daughter Zainab, 19, and two sons, Bilal, 17, and 15-year-old Jamal, died after their home was set alight on 13 September. |
Husband and father of the victims, Dr Muhammad Taufiq Al Sattar, told the gathering in Spinney Hill Park: "It's a sad day, my heart is crying." | |
Seven men are charged with murder. | Seven men are charged with murder. |
Dr Taufiq, a Dublin-based neurosurgeon, thanked everyone for their support. | |
He said: "I know our hearts are breaking but all the brothers and sisters are with me, everybody from Leicester from all denominations, outside Leicester and throughout the world. | |
"My faith has given me strength." | |
Local dignitaries, including police and crime commissioner Sir Clive Loader and the Venerable Dr Tim Stratford, archdeacon of Leicester, attended the service. | |
Dr Stratford said: "There is always a danger that violence and hate divide but today we see the people of Leicester reaching out together." | |
The bodies will now travel by ferry to Dublin for burial on Saturday. | The bodies will now travel by ferry to Dublin for burial on Saturday. |