CHRISTCHURCH | Two survivors of the carnage of mosques in New Zealand shouted Tuesday, in front of the court of Christchurch, their anger towards the killer Brenton Tarrant, calling him a “terrorist” who deserves to die and to never again see the sun “.
The white supremacist, who has been found guilty of 51 murders and 40 attempted murders, is, for the first time since Monday, confronted with the victims of the March 2019 carnage in two mosques in Christchurch.
Facing survivors overwhelmed with grief and anger, the 29-year-old Australian, who could be the first person in New Zealand to be sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, remained unmoved.
“I saw neither regret nor shame in the eyes of the terrorist who does not repent, so I decided not to read my testimony on the consequences (of this killing), but rather to show him the pain endured” , explained, exasperated, Mirwais Waziri to judge Cameron Mander.
The perpetrator of the carnage remained unmoved when witnesses applauded when Mr. Waziri turned to the killer to say: “Today you are a terrorist and we, as Muslims, we are not. terrorists”.
“You act like a coward and you are a coward. You live like a rat and you deserve it. You will die alone, like a virus that everyone avoids, ”Zuhair Darwish told him, whose brother died during the attacks.
“Not a human being”
“The just punishment would be the death penalty for him. I know New Zealand law has removed the death penalty for humans, but unfortunately he’s not a human, he doesn’t deserve to be tried like a human, ”he said.
A witness, whose name was erased by the court, asked the judge to pronounce on the killer “the most severe punishment possible”.
“I want you not to let this man see the sun, ever, ever,” he pleaded.
“This man must remain in prison for eternity (…) he is a sick man, he is not a human being”, according to him.
When witnesses called him a “devil” and a “hateful thug” who destroyed lives but made the New Zealand Muslim community stronger, Mr. Tarrant just stroked his chin.
Ambreen Naeem lost her husband Naeem Rashid and son Talha during the carnage.
Her husband, Naeem Rashid, is considered a hero after saving lives by attacking Mr. Tarrant in al-Nour Mosque in central Christchurch.
By destabilizing him, he allowed people to escape before the Australian got up and killed him.
“Since the death of my husband and my son, I have never had proper and normal sleep. I don’t think it will ever come back, ”said Ambreen Naeem.
“It is for me irreparable damage, that is why his punishment must be eternal”, she stressed.
“The devil”
The killer was also left unmoved when Noraini Milne, whose son Sayyad was killed, pointed at him and said, “You are already dead to me. Whatever your punishment, it will never be enough ”.
Mohammad Siddiqui was shot in the arm when “the devil” arrived at al-Nour mosque.
“Yes, I call him a devil because he entered the house of God with evil intentions in order to kill innocent people. You killed the dreams of my friends and family in your cowardly act, ”she told him.
The killer, who pleaded guilty in March, said he wanted to sow fear among those he called “invaders”, including the Muslim population of New Zealand.
But Raesha Ismail, who lost her brother Junaid in the shooting, claimed he only managed to make her faith even stronger.
During these hearings, which are to last four days and began on Monday, 66 people are called to testify on the consequences of this carnage on their existence.
Mr. Tarrant, who has chosen to defend himself, will then be allowed to address the court. The president of the Christchurch High Court of Justice is due to hand down the sentence on Thursday.