GAZA CITY, November 11 (IslamOnline,.net) – Thousands of Palestinians have taken to the streets across the occupied territories and in refugee camps across the world on Thursday, November 11, to mourn deceased Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.

Verses from the Noble Qur'an and statements mourning the veteran leader resonated from mosques in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Palestinian citizens ruled out any possible infighting after Arafat's death, but expected "minor" differences to pop up.

"The departure of Arafat could rather push us into more unity in order to stand up to the challenges ahead and Israeli aggressions," Hassanein said, bursting into tears.

Abdullah El-Telbani, 24, said he received the news of Arafat's death with heavy heart.

"He was a leader who witnessed many stages of the Palestinian cause. He was the symbol of our struggling for liberation."

In 1958, Arafat and a close friend named Khalil Al-Qazir (Abu Jihad) established a revolutionary cell called the Palestinian Liberation Movement or Fatah.

After that, he began a long battle for his still-unattainable dream of establishing an independent Palestinian state with Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem) as its capital.

Tareq Abdel-Wahid, 38, said the absence of Arafat would leave a vacuum on the Palestinian scene, "given his wide popularity and unique ability to survive crises."

Abdel-Wahid hoped the Palestinian Authority and resistance factions would set up a unified leadership to take over.

Mohamed Taha, 35, said Arafat had made great achievements as the leader of Palestinian Liberation Organization.

"Indeed, he laid the corner stone down the road of liberation," he said, hoping Arafat's successor would move forward on that way.

Taha recalled Arafat’s popularity among his people, saying: "If elections were held before his death with his successors, Arafat would sweep the vote in his favor."

Many Palestinians believe Arafat’s demise would turn a new leaf and mark a new phase in their struggle.

"Arafat was the only Palestinian leader empowered to decide on many issues. His death would, therefore, usher in a new and different stage of the struggle against the Israeli occupation forces," said Ghassan Mustafa.

He predicted many repercussions for Arafat's death, because the Palestinian president held several posts at the same time.

Arafat was the chairman of the Palestinian Authority, the leader of Fatah movement and the chairman of the PLO.

Mustafa believed that Rawhi Fattouh, the speaker of Palestinian Legislative Council who takes over the PA for 60 days until presidential elections are held, could not fill the vacuum.

"Arafat is a unique personality with unique history and relations," he said, anticipating that the vote would depend on the ground situation in occupied Palestinian territories.

Former premier Mahmoud Abbas was elected the new head of the PLO while PLO politburo chief Farouq Qaddumi was appointed head of Fatah.