Did Mr. Arafat die of foul play?

After receiving Yasser Arafat's medical file, his nephew, &to=http:// engforum.pravda.ru/showthread. php3?threadid=68364&goto=nextoldest' target=_blank>Nasser Al Kidwa, blamed Israel for the Palestinian leader's death and refused to hush up rumors of poisoning — even after the French doctors said they had found no known poison. Al Kidwa, the Palestinian representative at the United Nations, said the that Arafat’s medical file only concentrates on the cause of his death, "I believe the Israeli authorities are largely responsible for what happened," he said.

"The heart stopped beating, this was the cause," Al Kidwa said, adding that the cause of the cardiac arrest remained unclear. He expressed confidence in the &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/society/2001/05/10/4985.html' target=_blank>French doctors who had treated his uncle, but didn't rule out the possibility that Mr. Arafat died of foul play.

Al Kidwa’s remarks, at a Paris press conference came two hours after the French authorities handed him the files despite Suha Arafat's objections.

Al Kidwa said that he had asked for Yasser Arafat’s medical records on Nov. 11, within hours of his death, but that he was delayed in Cairo due to an illness in his family, informs Aljazeera.

According to the NYTimes, Mr. Kidwa said that he had asked for the report on Nov. 11, within hours of Mr. Arafat's death, but that he was delayed in Cairo because of an illness in his family. He received the 558-page file from members of the Defense Ministry's medical service just two hours before the news conference, complete with X-rays from the &to=http:// english.pravda.ru/main/2003/03/17/44505_.html' target=_blank>hematology and intensive care units that treated Mr. Arafat. The service administers the military hospital in the Paris suburb of Clamart, where Mr. Arafat died.

Mr. Kidwa said that he had not deeply studied the report but that he did not believe that it contained any secrets. "French medical authorities were faithful and honest in the past, and we believe the report will remain consistent with what we know," he said, adding, "I would be shocked if it is not consistent."