About 4,000 Muslims from Hong Kong gathered on Friday to pray for and offer condolences to the victims of the Tai Po fire, while other religious groups held prayer meetings to show spiritual support.
The Incorporated Trustees of the Islamic Community Fund of Hong Kong held a special prayer session at 1.30pm at Kowloon Mosque in Tsim Sha Tsui to pay respect to the victims.
The blaze at Wang Fuk Court killed at least 159 people. Among them were nine Indonesian domestic helpers and one Filipino domestic worker.
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Chief Imam Mufti Muhammad Arshad called for unity among the members of his community in their support of affected residents and their families.
“The Muslim community is all in sadness and also we express our sorrow and condolence to the people of Hong Kong, to the government of Hong Kong and especially to the people who are the victims,” he said. “We show our solidarity with the people of Hong Kong.”
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Arshad said his community were collecting funds to offer financial support to the victims’ families and make the arrangements for the funeral prayer as well as for returning the bodies to their home countries.
He said diplomats from Indonesia, Malaysia, Bangladesh, India, Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Qatar were among those who attended the prayer.