Three years on from the murder that shocked the nation and reverberated around the world, family and friends of Daphne Caruana Galizia gathered in silence.

They met at the spot where she was killed before 3pm on 16 October 2017, when a bomb placed under her seat was detonated by remote control.

Her son, Matthew Caruana Galizia, who was the first to make the grim discovery and who has been campaigning for justice ever since, joined dozens of activists at the site for a short while. 

No-one spoke. Some wore t-shirts calling for 'justice and truth' or depicting one of the investigative journalist's last blog posts: 'There are crooks everywhere'.

Half an hour before the proceedings, PN leader Bernard Grech and his wife Anne Marie paid a brief visit, too. They laid a wreath of flowers and left after paying their respects at the now iconic black and white image of the murdered journalist. 

Referring to the family, he said later: "We promise you our unwavering support to know the whole truth and ensure that justice is done to you and the Maltese people."

Friends and family of Daphne Caruana Galizia lay flowers at the site where the journalist was killed on 16 October 2017. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli. Tap the arrow to see more pictures.

PN leader Bernard Grech and his wife joined family and friends of Daphne Caruana Galizia on the third anniversary of her murder.

Wearing 'justice and truth' t-shirts%2C people applaud the memory of Daphne Caruana Galizia. Photo%3A Matthew Mirabelli

The tribute was part of a long day of events including a mass and a documentary on Daphne's legacy. 

The sombre silence was broken by a musical tribute from Rachel Fabri and Kevin Spiteri playing Simon and Garfunkel's Sound of Silence. 

As Fabri sang, members of civil society groups Repubblika, Occupy Justice and other activists slowly proceeded to lay flowers one by one.

The crowd, wearing face masks, applauded the woman killed as she worked to uncover corruption at the highest levels of state.