A national remembrance service has been held in New Zealand for the 50 victims of a mass shooting at two mosques in Christchurch.
More than 20,000 people attended the event, which took place two weeks after the shootings.
Muslim leaders and representatives from 59 countries were among those in attendance at Christchurch's Hagley Park.
Musician Cat Stevens - also known as Yusuf Islam - performed at the ceremony.
In a speech, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said New Zealand has a responsibility to the victims to be a place that is 'diverse, welcoming, kind and compassionate'.
She said: "An assault on the freedom of any one of us who practices their faith or religion is not welcome here.
"Violence or extremism in all its forms is not welcome here."
Ms Ardern - who was wearing a Maori cloak - insisted that violence and terrorism require a collective response from the global community.
She observed:"We cannot confront these issues alone, none of us can.
"But the answer to them lies in a simple concept that is not bound by domestic borders, that isn’t based on ethnicity, power base or even forms of governance.
"The answer lies in our humanity."
She added: "The world has been stuck in a vicious cycle of extremism breeding extremism and it must end."
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern meets members of the Muslim community following a national remembrance service in Hagley Park for the victims of the March 15 mosques terrorist attack in Christchurch, New Zealand, Friday, March 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Mark Baker)Meanwhile, a survivor of the terror attack spoke about how he has been able to forgive the person responsible.
Farid Ahmed told the crowd: "I cannot deny the fact that he is my human brother.
"Each human being is my brother, is my sister. This is my faith."
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison was among the others in attendance.
He also visited the Al Noor Mosque where one of the attacks took place.
Visited the Al Noor Mosque in #christchurch with Jen this morning to lay flowers to remember the victims of the NZ terror attack #kiakahachch pic.twitter.com/uyTflxJypj
— Scott Morrison (@ScottMorrisonMP) March 28, 2019
