Qatar's Al Jazeera television broadcast footage of thousands of mourners arriving at the Grand Mosque in Doha, which can hold about 30,000 people, for what is expected to be an "unprecedented" state funeral in the small Gulf state.
There is a large police presence at the site, especially in areas leading to the shrine. Most mourners are wearing the Palestinian flag and traditional keffiyeh (Arab scarf).
Media reports said the funeral would be attended by "high-ranking" figures. Hamas said that "Arab and Islamic leaders" would attend the funeral, without specifying who they were.
Ankara confirmed that Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan was in Doha to attend the ceremony and offered its condolences to Khaled Mashal, Hamas's number two political leader, whom Fidan had met in Doha. The Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv also flew the Turkish flag at half-mast in memory of Haniye.
Some Arab media outlets have suggested that the Taliban government’s deputy prime minister, Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, will be present.
Haniyeh’s body arrived in Qatar from Tehran on Thursday.
According to the Palestinian movement, Haniyeh’s body will be buried in the Lusail cemetery in Doha, the city where the Hamas leader had been living since 2019 and which also houses the Islamist group’s political office.
The burial will be reserved for family and selected individuals only due to the cemetery’s limited capacity, according to Al Jazeera, which said a condolence tent will be open for the next three days to pay tribute to the Hamas leader.
On Thursday, Tehran -- where Haniyeh was killed -- held a funeral led by Iran's supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in an event attended by thousands of people, including the country's political and military leadership.
Hamas again called for a day of "rage" over Haniyeh's death on Thursday.
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