Hundreds of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Saturday mourned the death of Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander Qassem Soleimani, killed by a U.S. air strike in Iraq.





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Leaders of the Islamist Hamas group, which rules Gaza, and of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad faction, both backed by Iran, joined mourners at a tent erected in Soleimani's honour in the heart of Gaza City.

Palestinians in Gaza City set fire to American and Israeli flags as they mourn Iranian general Qassem Soleimani

Flags of the United States and Israel were laid on the ground for visitors to tread on as they entered, passing murals of Soleimani.

The flags were later set on fire.

A mourning tent for Qassem Soliemani in Gaza on Saturday

"We are loyal to those who stood with the resistance and with Palestine and we hold the U.S administration and the Zionist occupation fully responsible for the consequences of this deplorable crime," said Ismail Radwan, a Hamas official.

Soleimani, 62, was the commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' foreign legions.

Palestinians walk on Israeli and American flags as they mourn Qassem Soleimani in Gaza City

As head of the Quds Force, he was the architect of Iran's drive to spread its influence in the Middle East through proxy militias, some of them now operating on the doorstep of its arch-enemy Israel.

Hamas - which has long enjoyed financial and military support from Tehran - on Friday condemned Soleimani's killing and sent its "dearest condolences" to Iran.

Israel, which defended the U.S. operation on Friday, has fought three wars with Hamas in the last decade, and in 2006 fought a war with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia across the Lebanese border.

The funeral for Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad on Saturday

Defense Minister Naftali Bennett summoned Israel's military and security chiefs to Tel Aviv on Friday in the wake of the U.S. airstrike.

Army Radio said the military had gone on heightened alert, amid fears that Iran could strike through its regional allies such as Tehran-backed Lebanese terror group Hezbollah to the north, or through the militant groups in Gaza.