Abbas seeks int'l inquiry into Arafat's death

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RAMALLAH, Nov. 17 -- Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas pushes for an international inquiry into the 2004 death of his predecessor Yassir Arafat, the Central Committee of Abbas' Fatah party said Sunday.

In his visit to Cairo earlier this week, Abbas asked the Secretary-General of the Arab League to activate an old resolution by the organization to form an international investigation committee into Arafat's death, said Nabil Abu Rdineh, spokesperson for Abbas and for the Central Committee.

Arafat died at a French hospital near Paris from blood disorder, but tests on his belongings and then the exhumation of his body for more analysis last year suggested that he might have been poisoned with radioactive polonium-210.

Last week, a Palestinian investigation panel blamed Israel for being behind Arafat's death as the "first, only and fundamental suspect."

• Truth of Arafat's death to boost Palestinian position in peace talks
• Swiss scientists confirm abnormal presence of polonium in samples of Arafat's body
• Report shows high levels of polonium behind Arafat's death
• Palestinian students hold memorial ceremony for Arafat
• PNA finalizes digging up remains of Arafat in Ramallah
• Remains of Arafat exhumed for poison tests
• Arafat's remains ready for Tuesday's exhumation: sources

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