Yasser Arafat "Very, Very Sick"

BBC News

The shell-marked compound has a small clinic of its own.
A team of doctors has arrived at Yasser Arafat's headquarters in Ramallah
where the ailing Palestinian leader's health has significantly deteriorated.
One cabinet minister, who asked not be identified, told Reuters that Mr
Arafat, 75, was "very, very sick".A crowd gathered, as a series of top Palestinian officials arrived. His wife
Suha should arrive later on Thursday.
Israel says Mr Arafat can go anywhere for treatment, but it is unclear if he
would be allowed back to the compound.

A top official told Reuters that if he leaves the West Bank, the question of
whether he could return was "a separate issue after he recuperates".
Israel's policy has been that Mr Arafat is free to leave the compound where
he is surrounded by Israeli troops, but may not be allowed to return.
Summoned to Bedside

There were unconfirmed reports that Mr Arafat had appointed a three-man
committee to take over while he recovers.
They were said to be Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei, former premier Mahmoud Abbas
and Parliament Speaker Salim al-Zaanoun.

Profile: Yasser Arafat

The first two have both visited Mr Arafat in recent hours.
A senior adviser to Mr Arafat, Nabil Abu Rudeina, denied the Palestinian
leader was about to hand over power.
He did confirm that Tunisian and Palestinian doctors were examining the
leader late on Wednesday.
Mr Arafat's long-time personal doctor, Jordanian neurologist Ashraf Kurdi,
said he had been asked to go to Ramallah urgently without being given details.
"Arafat's aides called me urgently," he was quoted by Reuters news agency as
saying.
"I am taking a team to assess his condition and do whatever is possible that
can be done. They refused to tell me what his condition was."
Doctors examined the Palestinian leader earlier this week after he complained
of stomach pains, but tests reportedly found no signs of major illness.
He is said to have been suffering from a bout of flu as well as a gallstone,
which is thought to be easily treatable.

Personal power
Despite being sidelined by Israel and the United States and the focus for
widespread Palestinian anger at the corruption of the authority he leads, Mr
Arafat is the most popular Palestinian leader and the symbol of their national
struggle.

He is president of the Palestinian Authority, and chairman of the Palestine
Liberation Organisation, which means that he also represents Palestinians
beyond the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Suha Arafat is expected at her husband's bedside.
There is no clear successor to Mr Arafat. His power is very much personal and
other Palestinian leaders have tended to be in his shadow.
Under the Palestinian Authority's constitution, the speaker of the
Palestinian Legislative Council, Rawhi Fattuh, would succeed. But this constitution has
yet to be fully ratified.

There were several reports that Mr Arafat had lost consciousness for a short
while — but these were quickly denied by his staff.
Israel has again offered to allow Mr Arafat to leave his compound if needed —
an offer rejected on Tuesday.

Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz renewed permission on Wednesday night for him to
make the four-minute journey to Ramallah hospital and also allowed Jordanian
doctors to come and examine him, Israel Radio reports.
He has, in effect, been confined to the compound by the Israeli army since
2001.
Israel accuses him of fomenting violence in the Palestinian intifada, an
allegation Mr Arafat denies.