• A funeral was held for ANC MP and former UDF activist Hishaam Mohamed on Tuesday.
• Prayers were offered at his home and next to his grave in Cape Town, within Covid-19 restrictions.
• The service was streamed via Zoom to accommodate hundreds of people who could not attend.

A moving Muslim funeral was held on Tuesday for ANC MP Hishaam Mohamed who died of a heart attack.

Prayers were offered at the home of the former United Democratic Front activist, lawyer and former head of the justice department in the province who died at the age of 55 on Monday. 

The service was streamed via Zoom to accommodate hundreds of people who could not attend.

Some left messages via the chat function for his family and friends, as Covid-19 strips families of the large gatherings where they can offer condolences in person. 

The janazah were held at his home in Pinelands, with his family and friends gathered around his shrouded body as prayers were offered.

Choked sobbing punctuated the intimate ceremony for the man described by National Assembly Speaker Thandi Modise via a video message as having the ability to calm tempers.

Parliament official Mfuzo Zenzile filmed proceedings, from the inside of the home to the prayers under an awning to the cemetery, for mourners who could not attend.

Covid-19 regulations stipulate only 50 people may attend a funeral.

Mohamed's body was taken to the cemetery by a Muslim burial service vehicle, and people standing in the grave gently helped lower him in. 

More prayers rose over the sound of spades and flowers, kept fresh in a blue bucket, were placed neatly in rows on his grave. 

A simple small headstone with his name and date of birth marked his final resting place. 

Modise said during the stream: "He has always been calm when some of us were boiling. [With] the ability to calm waters, the ability to find reason when some of us were losing hope."

She continued: "Rest well my brother, look at us when we need you."

ANC MPL in the Western Cape Muhammad Khaled Sayed said: "We are very shattered. It will take a while to get over this."

He thanked Mohamed's family for "lending" him to the community. 

"The best of human beings are those who serve," added Sayed. "I hope that his selflessness becomes a source of peace and calm for the family."

Mohamed is survived by his wife and three children.