Thousands of people thronged to the centre of Gaza City to mourn the death of Hamas military commander Ahmed Al-Jabari, killed in a target Israeli air strike on his car on Wednesday.

No Hamas officials attended the funeral, which various local media speculated was because they were in fear of further Israeli assassination attempts.

The funeral procession began at Gaza's Al-Shifa hospital, in the district of North Rimal, and thousands followed the body held aloft on a stretcher, draped in the green flags of Hamas, making their way towards Jabari's home, with crowd members firing bullets into the air as the procession made its way through packed streets, passed closed shops.

jabari

Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday

Jabri was the first high-profile casualty of "Operation Pillar of Defence", as Hamas's military chief, he was top of Israel's most wanted list for his part in co-ordinating terror attacks and the kidnapping of an Israeli soldier.

On Wednesday evening, mourners gathered at the Omari mosque for a memorial service, where some Hamas leaders were present.

Israeli newspaper Ma’ariv reported Jabari was into to be buried next to Ahmed Yassin and Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi, the founder and another senior Hamas leader, respectively, who were also both killed by the IDF, but because their graves were close to the border with Israel he was buried in a different, smaller graveyard, in the north of the territory.

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Palestinian men react at hospital after the body of Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing, was brought, in Gaza City

After the funeral, Hamas official Ismail al-Ashqar said in a statement to local media that the "[Palestinian] resistance can cause Israel great misery.

"The assassination constitutes an exacerbation of the Zionist escalation in the Gaza Strip and opens the door for a new phase of conflict."

The 11-month-old son of a BBC journalist killed in a Gaza strike was also buried on Thursday.

Hamas leaders have been warned by the Israel Defence Force they will be targeted in the coming days.

Brigadier General Yoav Mordechai, Israel's military spokesman said in a statement on Twitter after the attack: "We recommend that no Hamas operatives, whether low level or senior leaders, show their faces above ground in the days ahead.

"If I were a senior Hamas activist, I would look for a place to hide."

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  • Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. Israel barraged the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and shelling Wednesday and killed the Hamas military chief in a targeted strike, launching a campaign aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Islamic militants. The assault killed 10 other Palestinians, including two children and seven militants. On Thursday, militant rockets fired into Israel killed three Israelis, raising the likelihood of a further escalation. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. Israel barraged the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and shelling Wednesday and killed the Hamas military chief in a targeted strike, launching a campaign aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Islamic militants. The assault killed 10 other Palestinians, including two children and seven militants. On Thursday, militant rockets fired into Israel killed three Israelis, raising the likelihood of a further escalation. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Ahmed Jabari

    Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Ahmed Jabari

    Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Ahmed Jabari

    Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Palestinians pray over the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • People look at a wreckage of the car in which was killed Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the bodies of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, and Hamas member Mohammad Al Hams during their funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinian mourners gather around the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • People look at a wreckage of the car in which was killed Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinians pray over the body of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, during his funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. Israel barraged the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and shelling Wednesday and killed the Hamas military chief in a targeted strike, launching a campaign aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Islamic militants. The assault killed 10 other Palestinians, including two children and seven militants. On Thursday, militant rockets fired into Israel killed three Israelis, raising the likelihood of a further escalation.(AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Palestinian mourners carry the bodies of Hamas' top military commander Ahmed Jabari, killed in an Israeli strike on Wednesday, and Ranana Arafat, 6, during their funeral in Gaza City, Thursday, Nov. 15, 2012. Israel barraged the Gaza Strip with airstrikes and shelling Wednesday and killed the Hamas military chief in a targeted strike, launching a campaign aimed at stopping rocket attacks from Islamic militants. The assault killed 10 other Palestinians, including two children and seven militants. On Thursday, militant rockets fired into Israel killed three Israelis, raising the likelihood of a further escalation.(AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • People gather around a wreckage of the car in which was killed Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • People look at a wreckage of the car in which was killed Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • People look at a wreckage of the car in which was killed Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

  • Ahmed Jabari

    Palestinian security forces wheel into a hospital the body of Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing, in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Palestinian men react at hospital after the body of Ahmed Jabari, head of the Hamas military wing, was brought, in Gaza City, Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2012. The Israeli military said its assassination of the Hamas military commander marks the beginning of an operation against Gaza militants. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

  • Image from aerial footage made available by the Israeli Defense Force Wednesday Nov. 14, 2012 shows the car of Hamas military chief, Ahmad Jabari, circled, exploding as an airstrike hit. Israel killed the commander of the Hamas military wing in one of some 20 airstrikes on the Gaza Strip Wednesday, the heaviest barrage on the Palestinian territory in four years in retaliation for renewed rocket fire on southern Israel. (AP Photo/ IDF video via APTV)

  • Image from aerial footage made available by the Israeli Defense Force Wednesday Nov. 14, 2012 shows the car of Hamas military chief, Ahmad Jabari, circled, moments before an airstrike hit. Israel killed the commander of the Hamas military wing in one of some 20 airstrikes on the Gaza Strip Wednesday, the heaviest barrage on the Palestinian territory in four years in retaliation for renewed rocket fire on southern Israel. (AP Photo/ IDF video via APTV)

  • Ahmad Jabari

    RETRANSMISSION FOR ALTERNATE CROP - FILE - In this Oct. 18, 2011 file photograph, released Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, right, is escorted by commander of the Hamas military wing Ahmad Jabari on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing. Israel killed Jabari in Gaza on Wednesday in one of more than 20 airstrikes that marked the worst barrage in four years on the Palestinian territory after a new round of rocket fire hit southern Israel earlier this week. (AP Photo/Khalid Farid, File)

  • Gilad Schalit, Ahmad Jabari

    File - In this Oct. 18, 2011 file photograph, released Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, right, is escorted by commander of the Hamas military wing Ahmad Jabari on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing. Israel killed Jabari in Gaza on Wednesday in one of more than 20 airstrikes that marked the worst barrage in four years on the Palestinian territory after a new round of rocket fire hit southern Israel earlier this week. (AP Photo/Khalid Farid, File)