Posted on Sat, Nov. 06, 2004
Arafat's final wishes likely to be denied; P.M. meets with factions
BY CHRISTINE SPOLAR
Chicago Tribune
Instead, the Israelis suggested Arafat be laid to rest in Gaza in a tiny family grave that, as dozens of Palestinians found out Saturday, offers their storied leader little glory.
Any new plot would be crammed in among 32 existing graves, including those of Arafat's father and sister. The cemetery is behind a locked gate along an open market street in Khan Yunis that is abuzz with hawkers, braying donkeys and swarms of flies.
"I'm not a supporter of Arafat. I'm even part of the opposition. But shouldn't there be respect for where he wants to be buried?" asked Helmi Muhammed, an engineer who sneaked a peek at the white-granite graves of Arafat's father and sister.
"Arafat had the desire to be buried in Jerusalem. It's not the right of the Israelis to refuse him," said Mohammed Faris, a 40-year-old teacher drawn into the discussion around the grave markers littered with empty plastic soda bottles and torn candy wrappers.
Talk of Arafat's burial was deemed too sensitive by many Palestinian officials in Gaza, who shied away from discussing contingency plans. Hostile remarks about Arafat's demise from Israeli officials, in particular a statement Friday from Justice Minister Yosef Lapid, were described as inappropriate and racially divisive.
snip..
"There are no malignancies. There is nothing of any sort wrong with his bone marrow or his brain. We have no diagnosis for what is wrong with him. The doctors are investigating everything once, twice, three times," Shaath added.
Leila Shahid, the Palestinian envoy to France, said Arafat was in a coma. She suggested it occurred after he was put under anesthesia to have additional medical tests, including an endoscopy, colonoscopy and a biopsy of the spinal cord, the AP reported.
Endoscopy and colonoscopy, in which a camera is inserted through the throat or into the colon to inspect the intestine, involves sedation but not a general anesthetic, which would induce unconsciousness. However, a spinal cord biopsy is often done under general anesthesia.
If anesthesia is the sole cause of Arafat's coma, it is likely he will recover once the anesthetic wears off, brain expert Dr. Eric Braverman, director of the PATH Medical Foundation in New York, told AP. However, if the coma is the result of serious medical problems, the chances of recovery are smaller, Braverman said.
http://www.kentucky.com/mld/kentucky/news/world/10117851.htm
Key words 'exploded prematurely'
West Bank car blast kills two
From correspondents in Qalqilya, West Bank
07nov04
A CAR exploded in the West Bank today, killing two Palestinians and critically wounding a third, witnesses and medical sources said.
The identities of the casualties in the blast in Qalqilya town were not immediately known.
Dozens of Palestinian militants waging a four-year-old uprising against Israel have been killed when bombs they were assembling or transporting exploded prematurely.
http://www.theadvertiser.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5936,11312205%255E401,00.html