KULAIJAYA, Sept 17 — A moment of silence was observed at the congress of the PAS ulama wing for slain jihadist fighter Mohd Lotfi Ariffin, who was a member of Kedah PAS before he was expelled for his militant involvement.

At the end of his speech debating the wing’s keynote address, Perak delegate Norazli Musa asked for a short recital of prayers for Lotfi, whom he called a “martyr”; the  500-strong crowd obliged.

“Let us pray for the martyr Lotfi,” Norazli said before leading the recital of the Fatihah verse from the Quran.

Mohd Lotfi died Saturday evening after falling into a coma following an ambush on rebel militants last week, according to Facebook posts from other Malaysian jihadists.

Following his death, PAS MP for Pasir Mas Nik Abduh Nik Abd Aziz took to Twitter and Facebook earlier today to share a quote attributed to Lotfi, calling it “a good advice”.

Photos of Lotfi’s burial have since been shared by his supporters on social media and blogs, including one which claimed to be the official page of PAS’ charity corps Jabatan Amal. Some congratulated him on his “successful transaction”.

“Transaction” is an euphemism that refers to a verse in Quran detailing a “contract”, where Muslims are offered a place in Paradise in return for fighting and dying in the cause of Allah.

On Sunday, PAS offered its condolences to the family of Mohd Lotfi, with PAS information chief Datuk Mahfuz Omar saying the party still respects Mohd Lotfi’s decision to tread the path of jihadism and fight in war-torn Syria despite expelling him.

The man touted as a “martyr” by fellow Malaysian jihadists was sacked in a PAS central meeting on May 11, PAS-owned newspaper Harakah reported. The party severed all ties with Mohd Lotfi a month later.

Mohd Lotfi was reportedly critically injured and had fallen into coma after his group of fighters were caught in an attack by a fighter jet allegedly from the army of Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

In the same attack, another Muslim fighter from Kulim, Kedah known as “Abu Muhajir”, whose real name is believed to be Mohamad Fadlan Shah, 21, was also allegedly killed.

Last month, a 52-year-old jihadist fighter, known as Mat Soh or by his nom de guerre “Abu Turab”, allegedly died from shelling in strife-torn Syria while defending the town of Arzeh with several other jihadist fighters.