Hawzah News Agency - (Toronto - Canada) - Mohamed-Aslim Zafis spent his last hours as he did countless ones before — volunteering at a northwest Toronto mosque and helping those in need.

Zafis, 58, was remembered by friends and family at his funeral on Wednesday as a “kind, gentle soul” who, even on the day he was killed, handed out food to the hungry and worked to keep his fellow worshippers safe.

“He was an incredible man,” Zafis’s nephew, Zahir Zafis, said through tears.

“He never had any negative thoughts or words.”

Several hundred mourners gathered in the parking lot of the International Muslim Organization in Etobicoke to say goodbye to Zafis, just metres away from where he was stabbed to death on Saturday evening.

The attack — which police have said bears many similarities to another killing just days earlier — happened as Zafis was controlling entry to the mosque.

He had just finished saying the sunset prayers before he returned to his usual post outside the mosque, where he ensured everyone who entered wore a mask and respected COVID-19 physical distancing rules.