A 6-year-old Palestinian-American was stabbed 26 times for being Muslim, police say. His mom couldn't go to his funeral because she was stabbed, too

Loved ones and strangers united in grief Monday at the funeral of a 6-year-old Chicago-area boy who was killed because he was Muslim, officials say.

Wadea Al Fayoume was stabbed 26 times Saturday by his family's landlord in Plainfield Township, Illinois, the Will County Sheriff's Office said.

His 32-year-old mother, Hanaan Shahin, also suffered more than a dozen stab wounds, the sheriff's office said.

Shahin's serious injuries prevented her from attending her son's funeral Monday, said Ahmed Rehab, executive director for the Council on American-Islamic Relations' Chicago office. In accordance with tradition, deceased Muslims are buried as soon as possible after death.

The mother "will be feeling Wadea's loss more than anyone, but she is forced to mourn alone rather in the warm embrace of family and community at this time," Rehab said, adding she "is fighting serious bodily injuries at the hospital, not to mention the mental trauma of the gore she experienced and witnessed."

The attack is now being investigated by the Department of Justice as a hate crime.

"This incident cannot help but further raise the fears of Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian communities in our country with regard to hate-fueled violence," US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.