"New Zealand today fell silent in honour of the mosque attacks' martyrs," Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum wrote on Twitter on Saturday morning (NZ time), with a photo of the towering structure.

"Thank you PM @jacindaardern and New Zealand for your sincere empathy and support that has won the respect of 1.5 billion Muslims after the terrorist attack that shook the Muslim community around the world."

Fifty people were killed as they attended Friday prayers on March 15, and another 50 injured. The youngest were just toddlers.