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Palestinian women peek out from behind huge posters of Arafat in a memorial tribute in Gaza. (AP)
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| By israelinsider staff November 21, 2004 |
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The family of late Palestinian president Yasser Arafat had initially decided to postpone demanding from the French authorities his medical records and disclosure of the cause of his death for political reasons, Arafat's half-brother Mohsen said on Saturday. The following day he changed his mind.
Mohsen, a dentist from Abu Dhabi who was by Yasser's bedside during his dying days in Paris, told the Khaleej Times in his native Abu Dhabi on Saturday: "The process is going to take a long time. There are several other political reasons relating to the peace process and the future of the Palestinian people, and it also involves international parties," he said.
He did not explain his comments, or to which "international parties" he was referring.
Dr. Arafat said the death of his half-brother was "not natural, it was rather mysterious."
Dr. Arafat said that he met French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier on the day of his brother's death and discussed the issue with him: "He told me it is not in the interest of France or our interest (as Palestinians) to disclose the cause of his death. Holding any party criminally responsible for his death will create political trouble," he noted.
French authorities have previously said that criminal involvement in Arafat's death had been ruled out, or the police and legal authorities would have been notified. So the source of his concern about "any party criminally responsible for his death" is unclear, as is his belief that a criminal accusation would "create political trouble."
Dr. Arafat denied reports that France had agreed to hand over the dossier to one of Arafat's family members. "They haven't yet taken any such decision and if that is true, we are all eligible to receive those records," he said, adding that as per the French law, he, his brothers and sisters are eligible to demand the dossier, and not only Suha Arafat.
However, the following day, after Suha absconded with the records, her lawyer hinted that a legal showdown could ensue if other relatives got copies, Mohsen was singing a different tune. He told Al-Arabiya television that "we are ready to hand over the records to the Palestinian Authority," adding that "it is the right of the Palestinian people" to know what killed their leader, according to AP.
Yasser Arafat's nephew arrived in Paris on Sunday to collect the Palestinian leader's medical records. Nasser al-Kidwa, who is also the Palestinian representative to the United Nations, would not say after his arrival exactly when he would collect the dossier.
Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat confirmed that al-Kidwa was in Paris "on behalf of the Palestinian leadership to collect the medical files of President Arafat."
"I hope the French will hand him the files" on Sunday or Monday, he said in a telephone call from the West Bank.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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