The body of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat has begun its final return to the Middle East from the Paris hospital where he died early on Thursday. Mr Arafat's coffin, draped in the Palestinian flag, was taken by helicopter to a French military airport, where a ceremony was held. His body was then put on board a plane bound for Cairo, where his funeral will take place on Friday. The Palestinian Authority has declared 40 days of mourning. Members of the French government attended the ceremony at Villacoublay airport, described by the BBC's Allan Little in Paris as a semi-state occasion. A military band played a funeral march as Mr Arafat's coffin was carried to an Airbus plane bearing the livery of the French republic. Funeral arrangements Thursday: Body is flown to Cairo, arriving late at night Friday morning: State funeral at King Faisal Mosque near Cairo airport Saturday: Body is interred in Ramallah compound in West Bank No members of the public were present at the airport. Earlier, crowds of Arafat supporters at Percy hospital, chanting, "We are all Palestinians", had waved candles and flags as Mr Arafat's body began its journey home. In the Middle East, wails of grief and volleys of gunfire from Gaza to the Palestinian refugee camps of Lebanon and Jordan marked the passing of the Palestinian leader.