New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardenne has offered condolences to the families of victims of the attack on two mosques in the Christchurch region that killed 49 people wearing a headscarf in a gesture of solidarity in a meeting with representatives of the Muslim community and the families and relatives of several victims.
"We are deeply troubled by what happened to you, we feel sorrow, injustice and anger. We share this with you. You want your loved ones to return to you. I know that there are religious matters regarding burial, and this is on our list of priorities," she said.
"One of the things we faced was the mosques. We had to make sure they were safe for people, and once the police could do that, I started identifying and identifying your loved ones, of course they would do it as quickly as possible," she said.
"Make sure that we know how important it is to speed up these operations for you and we are doing everything we can do right now," she said. "Your safety is the second thing I want to emphasize, to have safe places to worship and to feel secure during your worship."