Palestinians gather to pray over the body of Hamas founder and leader Muhammad Hassan Shama, 76, during his funeral procession at Al Omari Mosque in Gaza City, Friday, June 10, 2011. Shama, a founder of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, died of a stroke after decades as an important yet little-known figure at the helm of the Palestinian militant organization. A revered figure among Hamas loyalists but nearly anonymous outside of Gaza, Shama was one of the eight founders of the Islamic group in the 1980s. After his death Friday, Hamas publicly announced for the first time that he had been the leader of the secretive Shura Council, its top governing body. The identity of the council's members is a closely guarded secret because of fears they could be targeted by Israel.
Hatem Moussa Associated Press