Dubai: Lt. General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, died on Thursday night at Rashid Hospital following a heart attack.

Following are the latest updates:

The late Dubai Police Chief, Lt Gen Khamis Mattar Al Mazeinah, was laid to rest in Dubai's Al Ghusais graveyard, with hundreds of people praying for him, including shaikhs, top officials and well-wishers from the wider public.

People prayed in at least three separate groups in succession to accommodate the crowds.

Family, some with tears in their eyes, received condolences from the attendees who are trickling out now.

Al Mazeinah died on Thursday night at Rashid Hospital in Dubai.

"He was a very approachable, open and humorous person. He greatly benefitted Dubai Police by establishing various new departments and empowering their heads to be a force for good," said a Pakistani employee in Dubai Police's HR department who was at the burial.

"He was a true gentleman. I heard about his death through colleagues on Thursday night."

Dubai Police is directing the rush of cars and traffic leading to the huge public graveyard on Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Road.

. @HHShkMohd performs funeral prayers of the late Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Dubai Police Chief at Zabeel Grand Mosque pic.twitter.com/ORFz7q6owG— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 25, 2016

Earlier, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai, accompanied by Lt General Shaikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, and Shaikh Maktoum Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, led the Friday prayers at the Zabeel Grand Mosque, which will be followed by funeral prayers for Lt Gen Al Mazeina.

صورة: محمد بن راشد يرافقه حمدان ومكتوم بن محمد وسيف بن زايد، يؤدي صلاة الجمعة التي سيعقبها صلاة الجنازة على المرحوم خميس مطر المزينة pic.twitter.com/A9hsIVagEA — Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 25, 2016



Hundreds of well-wishers have gathered at the Zabeel Mosque to attend the funeral prayer for Lt. General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, who died on Thursday night.

The funeral prayer was held after the Friday prayers.

Security is tight. A few expats too have arrived for prayers and respects. Zabeel Mosque, located in the namesake area, is also formally known as Shaikh Rashid Bin Saeed Al Maktoum Grand Mosque.

Condolences pour in

Lt General Al Mazeina died on Thursday night at Rashid Hospital after he was rushed there following a heart attack.Condolences poured in from early Friday morning.

Shaikh Mohammad condoled with the family of the Dubai Police Chief in a series of tweets on Friday morning, one of which states. “My personal condolences to the family of Khamis Matar and his companions, the people of Dubai and the people of the UAE…”

تعازي الشخصية لأسرة خميس مطر وأصحابه ولأهل دبي ولشعب دولة الامارات ، ومن ترك إرثا للوطن كإرث خميس مطر فما رحل بل سطر نفسه في سجل مجد الدولة pic.twitter.com/ojEtFD9B5K— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) November 25, 2016

فقدت دولة الامارات أحد رجالها المخلصين .. خميس مطر المزينة كان قائدا لفريق عمل وجندي في خدمة الوطن وأب لأسرة صالحة .. رحمه الله رحمة واسعة pic.twitter.com/cASMElVk45— HH Sheikh Mohammed (@HHShkMohd) November 25, 2016

Lt Gen Al Mazeina became the General Commander of Dubai Police in 2013. He succeeded Lieutenant General Dahi Khalfan Tamim.

رحم الله خميس مطر المزينة.. عرفته عن قرب فوجدت فيه رجل الإخلاص في خدمة وطنه وشعبه.. ورجل النجاح لـمؤسسة قويّـة.. pic.twitter.com/MPhgx2UesE— Hamdan bin Mohammed (@HamdanMohammed) November 25, 2016

Lieutenant General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police passes away. pic.twitter.com/AQ9glRfW2f— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 24, 2016

.@DXBMediaOffice expresses its condolences to the family of Lt. Gen Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina; Dubai Police Chief.. May Allah bless his soul. pic.twitter.com/AyCpdcTlr2— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) November 25, 2016

He was previously the deputy commander of Dubai Police.

Earlier Lt Gen Al Mazeina was the director of the general directorate for criminal investigations at Dubai Police, a role he took over in 2000.

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Lt Gen Al Mazeina was appointed as deputy commander of the force through a decree issued by His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, in 2008.

Well known for his high professionalism, Lt Gen Al Mazeina has many outstanding accomplishments in the field of police and security work.





Dubai Police turned its badge black and white on social media out of respect for Lt Gen Al Mazeina.

Lt Gen Al Mazeina’s career with the police spanned some 31 years. He was involved in solving a number of high-profile cases, including the Wafi Mall heist in 2009, the assassination of a Hamas leader in Dubai and the murder of Lebanese singer Suzan Tamim.

In September this year, he led the investigation into the sensational murder case of a Filipina whose headless body was found in a desert area in Al Warqa’a on Academic City Road.

Earlier in May, he led the investigation into the rape and murder of a Jordanian boy who was kidnapped from Sharjah.

Condolences flooded social media following the news of Lt Gen Al Mazeina’s death.

A hashtag with his name was trending on Twitter a few minutes after the news broke.

Shaikh Wassim Yousuf (@waseem_yousef), lecturer at Shaikh Zayed Grand Mosque, tweeted in Arabic, "May he be in Paradise, may Allah have mercy on him."

Another user Ahmad Mousa (@ah_moosa), tweeted: "God have mercy on a man who stayed awake so people could sleep in peace and security," and prayed god to have mercy on him.

"The UAE lost one of its loyal men," said user @ahmed_dubai1 in his tweet.

Other Twitter users expressed their shock at the news and prayed for his soul.

The news has also started spreading on Facebook, with people sharing his photos, expressing their condolences and offering their prayers.

The Dubai Police social media accounts, including Twitter and Facebook, changed the Dubai Police classic red logo to black and white to mourn the loss.

They also retweeted the Dubai Media Office's (@DXBMediaOffice) tweet announcing the death, "Lieutenant General Khamis Mattar Al Mazeina, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police passes away."