Hundreds attend funeral of elderly American woman who died in Abu Dhabi

Hundreds of Emiratis attended the funeral of an American expatriate thought to have only one surviving relative.

A large number of Emirati citizens who did not know Louise Jane Mitchell, 93, attended her funeral outside Abu Dhabi on Saturday in a show of community spirit.

It is understood Ms Mitchell is survived by a son and no other relatives.

News of Ms Mitchell’s death was only learned when Janaza UAE, a social media account promoting UAE funerals, posted about her.

Emirati vlogger Majed Alarmy shared the story of her funeral on Twitter, saying many of the mourners were strangers.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Interior Sheikh Saif bin Zayed shared Mr Alarmy’s description of the funeral, saying it was a showcase of the spirit of the UAE community.

Mr Alarmy said: “The woman had convert to islam. Her funeral took place in the same cemetery where my parents were buried, next to the mosque.

“Information about funerals is at WhatsApp groups. The mosque can accommodate 500 people.The number of men who attended the funeral was full mosque There were people all the way to the parking lot, so there were almost 1,000 people.

“Men who didn’t even know her came to the funeral.

“In Islam, they say that if 40 people attend a person’s funeral and pray for that person, it is enough to remove their sins.

“Only Allah knows what a beautiful thing she has done to make so many people appear. May Allah grant her Paradise.

“For those who talk about women’s rights in Islam hundreds of men carried her body to the cemetery. This religion comes to uplift women and I ask Allah to lift her up to heaven. This is Islam and this is reality.”

Updated: November 21, 2022 at 2:45 am