Thousands of people came together to offer traditional Islamic funeral prayers for three men killed by teenage gunmen at the Islamic Center of San Diego on Monday, while a smaller group gathered later in the day to bury them in a National City cemetery.

Such a large crowd of mourners showed up for the Janazah prayer service at a park next to Snapdragon Stadium in Mission Valley — some 5,000, according to San Diego police estimates — that the event began about a half hour later than planned.

The service honored the three who died while the region’s largest mosque was under attack: Amin Abdullah, 51; Mansour Kaziha, 78; and Nader Awad, 57. Mosque members called them heroes and martyrs.

Abdullah was a security guard at the Clairemont center who engaged in a gunbattle with the teens and used his radio to call for a lockdown, sounding a warning that helped those inside get to safety. Kaziha had been a part of the center since it began and worked in the mosque’s store, while Awad lived across the street and prayed daily at the center. His wife taught school there.

During the prayer service near Snapdragon, the bodies of the three, shrouded in fabric, were taken from hearses and carried and placed under a shade canopy. Mourners recited a phrase in Arabic that translates to “God is greater” or “God is the greatest,” and raised their hands.

A heavy police presence could be seen in the stadium parking lot and around the park, with emergency vehicles parked nearby.

After the prayer service ended, the hearses drove to La Vista Memorial Park in National City, where hundreds attended the burial.

According to Tazheen Nizam, the executive director of the San Diego chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the ceremony was done in accordance with Islamic ritual, which includes prayers being said before the three caskets were lowered into the ground and during the graveside ceremony.

Nizam said the bodies of the men were treated and washed by other Muslim men and covered in a shroud so they could be laid to rest within a 72-hour time frame. At the burials, the families of the deceased were invited to pour earth over the coffins.

Nizam said La Vista was able to accommodate the three burials — which needed to be done at the same time within a handful of days — in the Muslim section of the cemetery, while other facilities said they would not be able to provide them with services.

After the grave was closed, the clergy then continued to say prayers and recitations from the Quran.

“The prayers are us asking that the deceased grant them into the highest levels of Jannah, which is heaven for us,” Nizam said. “We then say prayers for the family to have patience while they deal with such a heinous act, while they deal with such a great loss.”

Police said Caleb Liam Vazquez, 18, and Cain Lee Clark, 17, were responsible for the attack, which is being investigated as a suspected hate crime. The teens apparently took their own lives a short time after the shooting.

“The community is devastated, they are shocked that something like this can happen at a place of worship, a place of love, a place that has helped so many people near and dear,” Nizam said.

Abdullah Zahir, an attendee at the burial, said he had come to the cemetery straight from work. The 28-year-old has attended the mosque his entire life and knew the three men well.

As people walked by to say hello to him, he quickly put on his thobe — an ankle-length, loose-fitting robe worn primarily by men in the Arab world and broader Muslim communities — before walking to the graveside.

Zahir said that he felt the attack had left many people feeling fearful, and that, within minutes of hearing of the Islamic Center shooting, he had even considered driving over to a mosque near his home in North County, worried that it might also be targeted.

“You always wish that it’s not anyone you know, and it’s even harder to get the news from someone else,” Zahir said. “But being here today is the responsibility of the entire Muslim community. These men were my brothers … because we share the same faith.”

Aayah Fatayerji, a San Diego doctor, said she saw Muslims and non-Muslims there to support the families of those killed.

“I think it is important to show that we’re not going to be turned away,” Fatayerji said. “When hate comes, love prevails. I think it’s important to show that we stand together.”

Setche Kwamu-Nana said she isn’t Muslim but came to the prayer service to show her support for the community. She said she’s gone to the mosque for events and social occasions, and has friends who attend the mosque. She also said the Islamic Center has been instrumental in building bridges in the community.

“It is really sad. I strongly believe nobody is born with hate,” she said, her voice thick with emotion. “It’s a failure of our society that we can spread so much misinformation, and sometimes this misinformation is from within our own communities, our own churches … When you combine the misinformation with the access to weapons, this is what we get.”

Georgia Gulindo Barreto, who said she became Muslim 33 years ago, knew all three of the victims and their families well. She said she wanted to send a message to the people who “brainwashed” the teens involved in the attack.

“Somebody is behind this, and these are the real people who need to be found. This didn’t happen overnight,” she said. “The message I want to give is, they didn’t break us. They made us stronger.”

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