Mecca: In a deeply emotional incident, Shabeer Kattil (48), a native of Manjeri in Kerala, passed away while performing I’tikaf during the last ten days of Ramadan at the Holy Haram in Mecca.
A long-time expatriate in Jeddah, Shabeer had briefly returned to Kerala before resuming his life abroad. He had gone missing for a couple of days before his body was later found following a search by friends and authorities.
Just before the final rites, his wife and children saw his face for the last time through a video call. His children’s tearful cries of “Miss you Papa, love you Papa” left everyone present overwhelmed with emotion.
Community members involved in funeral procedures said they had never witnessed such a heartbreaking moment before. Unable to receive his children’s final embrace, Shabeer’s farewell through a mobile screen has left the expatriate community in deep sorrow.
