I reported yesterday on the knife attack on two schoolgirls in the German town of Illerkirchberg. One of the girls was killed, and the other was severely wounded. The alleged perpetrator of the attack was an Eritrean immigrant.

Based on her name (“Ece”) and the context of the reports, the girl who was killed was an ethnic Turk.

The article below reports on the funeral in Illerkirchberg for the murdered schoolgirl. Many thanks to MissPiggy for translating this piece from Pleiteticker.de:

Funeral service at the cemetery: The heartbreaking words of Ece’s mother

Jan A. Karon and Pauline Schwarz report from Illerkirchberg.

“She always smiled and was always cheerful” — when Nuray S., the mother of the murdered Ece, utters these words at her daughter’s grave, she breaks down. The loss, grief and anger over the terrible event seem almost impossible for her to cope with. She cries out her pain to the world.

No one at the cemetery can relate to this pain of the mother that tore her heart apart. But the family is not alone. Hundreds of people came to Ece’s funeral at noon Wednesday at the small cemetery in Illerkirchberg.

Before the funeral procession reaches the cemetery, there is a dead silence in the village. Friends, family, classmates; the immediate environment wants to stand by the family in this indescribably difficult time, but also people from Mannheim, Ulm, Stuttgart and other cities have come to say goodbye.

Hundreds of people wear a photo of Ece on their jackets, with the date of her death — the day on which a 27-year-old asylum seeker from Eritrea took the little girl’s life.

It is a moment of grief and anger. A family member finally takes the floor and speaks to the police officers present. The man loudly affirms that he does not want the subject, the crime, to be forgotten. He does not want any politicians to express condolences, but in a few days’ time no one will care about Ece’s death. No one here knows or understands why the little girl had to die.

Meanwhile, Ece’s friends, her family, neighbors and acquaintances have gathered around the grave. Among them are many representatives of the Turkish communities, one of whom gives a moving speech for Ece. The man says in a quivering voice that the Alevi community condemns the heinous act in the strongest possible terms — “we share this deep pain with Ece’s relatives.”

After that there is a moment of silence; the man struggles with composure. It is not easy for him and the Alevi community to find the right words, but they would like to express their deepest condolences: “In the Alevi faith, one does not speak of death. But of the migration to the Divine Truth.”

Ece’s mother then appeals to people for dignified, peaceful and loving interaction in society. On this day, many people have their say. Messages from friends, acquaintances and family are read out: “I will never forget your beautiful smile. I often think of our beautiful times. Since you are my biggest role model, I loved asking your opinion … You will always be the best sister I could ever imagine. I love you very, very, very much, you will always keep a big piece of my heart.”

In Illerkirchberg, no one will forget little Ece and the terrible circumstances of her death — no one should.