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Posted on 11/06/2004 5:21:00 AM PST by jriemer
RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) - Ailing Palestinian President Yasser Arafat - too weak to stand, unable to hold down food and spending most of Thursday sleeping - agreed to leave his battered compound for the first time in more than two years and fly to Paris for urgent medical treatment.
The 75-year-old Palestinian leader's planned departure Friday, a decade after he arrived on the West Bank of the Jordan River with the promise of statehood, could mark the end of an era. Arafat, who hoarded power and declined to groom a successor, leaves behind a people in disarray.
Blood tests revealed he had a low platelet count, though it was unclear what caused the ailment, his doctors said, ruling out leukemia. In deference to his deteriorating condition, Israel lifted its travel ban on Arafat, allowing him to leave his battered headquarters compound in Ramallah for the first time since 2002 and to return if he recovers.
Arafat will be moved to the Jordanian capital Amman early Friday, then continue on to Paris for medical treatment, said Munnib al-Masri, an Arafat aide. Jordan sent two helicopters to pick up Arafat.
Palestinians across the Middle East anxiously but quietly monitored Arafat's health Thursday but there was no mass vigil around his compound or any other public displays of support.
"I pray to God to save him because we need him, he is the safety valve for everything here, he is the father of all the Palestinians," said Imad Samara, a 38-year-old teacher from Gaza City.
Palestinian officials tried to play down Arafat's health problems earlier Thursday, saying he performed Muslim prayers before dawn and ate a light breakfast of cornflakes and milk.
They released a brief video and two photos showing him sitting in a chair, wearing blue pajamas and a dark stocking cap and smiling broadly as he posed with his doctors Thursday afternoon. In the video, he holds two of his doctors' hands and leans over to kiss one of them.
Dr. Ashraf Kurdi said there is no immediate threat to Arafat's life.
"His condition is good, his spirits are high," Kurdi said.
But the seriousness of his condition was underscored by the rushed arrival of Arafat's 41-year-old wife, Suha, who lives in Paris with their young daughter and has not seen her husband since 2001.
A close associate said Arafat spent most of Thursday sleeping. When he awoke, he was too weak to stand and was put in a wheelchair, the associate said on condition of anonymity. Arafat has been unable to hold down food and also suffers from diarrhea, the associate said. At times, Arafat appeared confused, not recognizing some of his visitors, he added.
Doctors later said he had a low platelet count. That can indicate a variety of problems, including bleeding ulcers, colitis, liver disease, lupus and chicken pox.
His doctors recommended he be moved to Paris, where he can receive better medical care. French President Jacques Chirac's office said France will send a plane to take him there.
Palestinian bulldozers entered Arafat's compound Thursday night and began clearing away rubble and cars crushed by Israeli raids, presumably to make room for a makeshift helipad.
Despite Israel's promise to let Arafat return, his deteriorating condition and his departure from the West Bank are likely to dramatically change Palestinian politics.
Several potential successors were already reported jockeying for position, a development that could transform relations with Israel. The Israel government has refused to deal with Arafat, saying he was fomenting terror and is not a partner for peace.
"Whatever will be, we are seeing Arafat being sidelined. A new situation has been created that could be for the better, or worse," said Yossi Beilin, an Israeli politician and former peace negotiator.
"It can be better, because there is a group around Arafat, veterans of the Palestinian political system, who are pragmatic and believe in the peace process," he said, referring to Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia and former premier Mahmoud Abbas.
In an effort to show their leadership is not paralysed, Palestinians are to convene two bodies in Arafat's absence - the Palestinian cabinet and the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, said Yasser Abed Rabbo, a former minister and close confidant of Arafat.
"We admit that things will not be easy," Abed Rabbo said, "but we will try our best for full co-ordination...and we will consult with president Arafat on the important issues."
The U.S. administration, which has also tried to sideline Arafat, said it hopes he receives the medical care he needs.
"This is not a political matter for us," U.S. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said.
"This is a matter of seeing that an ill person gets the medical care they need for health."
Arafat had been ill for two weeks, with Palestinian officials insisting he was suffering from a persistent flu and doctors saying he had a large gallstone. Israeli officials speculated Arafat had stomach cancer but his doctors said tests ruled that out. The Palestinian leader has shown symptoms of Parkinson's disease since the late 1990s.
Arafat's condition sharply deteriorated Wednesday evening when he vomited after eating soup, then collapsed and was unconscious for about 10 minutes, a bodyguard said.
The Palestinian leader has groomed no successor and many feared his death would spark chaos and violence throughout Palestinian cities and villages.
Arafat has been confined to his compound since December 2001 except for a one-day respite in May 2002, when he toured the West Bank in a Jordanian helicopter to inspect damage following a 34-day Israeli military operation. He has remained in the compound because of Israeli threats, sieges and his own fears of being banished.
The last time Arafat travelled abroad was November 2001, when he visited Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, in a telephone conversation Thursday with Qureia, agreed to allow Arafat to be flown abroad for treatment. Israeli officials said they feared a backlash in the Arab world if the country is perceived as contributing to Arafat's death.
In a flurry of meetings Thursday, Israeli leaders also talked about what might happen after Arafat's departure or death. Israel has prepared contingency plans for Arafat's death, including how to deal with possible riots and prevent Palestinian attempts to bury him in Jerusalem.
A customer enters a pet shop.
Mr. Praline: 'Ello, I wish to register a complaint.
(The owner does not respond.)
Mr. Praline: 'Ello, Miss?
Owner: What do you mean "miss"?
Mr. Praline: I'm sorry, I have a cold. I wish to make a complaint!
Owner: We're closin' for lunch.
Mr. Praline: Never mind that, my lad. I wish to complain about this parrot what I purchased not half an hour ago from this very boutique.
Owner: Oh yes, the, uh, the Norwegian Blue...What's,uh...What's wrong with it?
Mr. Praline: I'll tell you what's wrong with it, my lad. 'E's dead, that's what's wrong with it!
Owner: No, no, 'e's uh,...he's resting.
Mr. Praline: Look, matey, I know a dead parrot when I see one, and I'm looking at one right now.
Owner: No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'! Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage!
Mr. Praline: The plumage don't enter into it. It's stone dead.
Owner: Nononono, no, no! 'E's resting!
Mr. Praline: All right then, if he's restin', I'll wake him up! (shouting at the cage) 'Ello, Mister Polly Parrot! I've got a lovely fresh cuttle fish for you if you
show...
(owner hits the cage)
Owner: There, he moved!
Mr. Praline: No, he didn't, that was you hitting the cage!
Owner: I never!!
Mr. Praline: Yes, you did!
Owner: I never, never did anything...
Mr. Praline: (yelling and hitting the cage repeatedly) 'ELLO POLLY!!!!! Testing! Testing! Testing! Testing! This is your nine o'clock alarm call!
(Takes parrot out of the cage and thumps its head on the counter. Throws it up in the air and watches it plummet to the floor.)
Mr. Praline: Now that's what I call a dead parrot.
Owner: No, no.....No, 'e's stunned!
Mr. Praline: STUNNED?!?
Owner: Yeah! You stunned him, just as he was wakin' up! Norwegian Blues stun easily, major.
Mr. Praline: Um...now look...now look, mate, I've definitely 'ad enough of this. That parrot is definitely deceased, and when I purchased it not 'alf an hour
ago, you assured me that its total lack of movement was due to it bein' tired and shagged out following a prolonged squawk.
Owner: Well, he's...he's, ah...probably pining for the fjords.
Mr. Praline: PININ' for the FJORDS?!?!?!? What kind of talk is that?, look, why did he fall flat on his back the moment I got 'im home?
Owner: The Norwegian Blue prefers keepin' on it's back! Remarkable bird, id'nit, squire? Lovely plumage!
Mr. Praline: Look, I took the liberty of examining that parrot when I got it home, and I discovered the only reason that it had been sitting on its perch in the
first place was that it had been NAILED there.
(pause)
Owner: Well, o'course it was nailed there! If I hadn't nailed that bird down, it would have nuzzled up to those bars, bent 'em apart with its beak, and
VOOM! Feeweeweewee!
Mr. Praline: "VOOM"?!? Mate, this bird wouldn't "voom" if you put four million volts through it! 'E's bleedin' demised!
Owner: No no! 'E's pining!
Mr. Praline: 'E's not pinin'! 'E's passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! 'E's expired and gone to meet 'is maker! 'E's a stiff! Bereft of life, 'e
rests in peace! If you hadn't nailed 'im to the perch 'e'd be pushing up the daisies! 'Is metabolic processes are now 'istory! 'E's off the twig! 'E's kicked the
bucket, 'e's shuffled off 'is mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleedin' choir invisibile!! THIS IS AN EX-PARROT!!
(pause)
Owner: Well, I'd better replace it, then. (he takes a quick peek behind the counter) Sorry squire, I've had a look 'round the back of the shop, and uh,
we're right out of parrots.
Mr. Praline: I see. I see, I get the picture.
Owner: I got a slug.
(pause)
Mr. Praline: Pray, does it talk?
Owner: Nnnnot really.
Mr. Praline: WELL IT'S HARDLY A BLOODY REPLACEMENT, IS IT?!!???!!?
Owner: N-no, I guess not. (gets ashamed, looks at his feet)
Mr. Praline: Well.
(pause)
Owner: (quietly) D'you.... d'you want to come back to my place?
Mr. Praline: (looks around) Yeah, all right, sure.
He's already in hell.
He's not dead, just laying low until the platelet re-count...
Le' Monde states that he went bowling tonight!
Thank you!! That is great!! You should do the other bernie pick. LMAO!!!
The latest from ABC News:
CLAMART, France Nov 6, 2004 — Yasser Arafat is not in a coma but remained in intensive care after undergoing more medical tests, a senior aide to the ailing Palestinian leader said Saturday. Test results were expected within days.
Nabil Abu Rdeneh, Arafat's spokesman, would not say whether his announcement meant Arafat had emerged from a coma or had not been in a coma at all. He also refused to say whether he had seen Arafat personally and did not specify the nature of the new medical tests.
"He is not in a coma," Abu Rdeneh told reporters after coming out of the French military hospital where Arafat has been treated for more than a week. "He is still in the intensive care unit.
"He is under strict medical observance. We hope that in the coming few days we will be able to know exactly what he is suffering from. So far, nobody could diagnose the situation," he said, adding that Arafat's condition was stable.
Doctors have not yet made public any diagnosis, but the Palestinian envoy to France, Leila Shahid, said Friday that the 75-year-old Arafat was in a coma and "at a critical point between life and death."
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