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Palestinian Hanadi Kharma paints a mural of Yasser Arafat in the West Bank city of Nablus yesterday. AP Photo/Nasser Ishtayeh

Palestinians say there's only one suspect in Arafat death

Swiss scientists have found “moderate” evidence to support the notion that Yasser Arafat was poisoned with polonium – and the Palestinians want to get to the bottom of what happened.

PALESTINIAN INVESTIGATORS HAVE said today that Israel is the “only suspect” in the death of president Yasser Arafat nine years ago, after laboratory tests suggested he died from polonium poisoning.

“We say that Israel is the prime and only suspect in the case of Yasser Arafat’s assassination, and we will continue to carry out a thorough investigation to find out and confirm all the details and all elements of the case,” Palestinian inquiry chief Tawfiq Tirawi told a news conference in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Tirawi said the Palestinian inquiry had studied the findings of Swiss scientists, released on Wednesday, which “moderately” supported the notion that Arafat had been poisoned.

“This is the crime of the 21st century,” Tirawi said.

The fundamental (goal) is to find out who is behind the liquidation of Yasser Arafat.

The Palestinian justice minister Ali Mhanna has urged France to send findings from its investigation ito the death, saying it is still waiting for them.

International inquiry

Palestinian officials yesterday demanded an international inquiry into Arafat’s “killing”.

“The results prove Arafat was poisoned by polonium,” said senior Palestine Liberation Organisation official Wasel Abu Yusef.

“This substance is owned by states, not people, meaning that the crime was committed by a state,” he told AFP, calling for an “international committee” to probe the killing along the lines of the one that investigated the murder of Lebanon’s Rafiq Hariri.

Swiss results

Speaking to reporters in Lausanne Thursday, the Swiss team said the test results neither confirmed nor denied that polonium was the actual source of his death, although they provided “moderate” backing for the idea he was poisoned by the rare and highly radioactive element.

They said the quantity of the deadly substance found on his remains pointed to the involvement of a third party.

“We can’t say that polonium was the source of his death… nor can we rule it out,” said Professor Francois Bochud of the Lausanne Institute of Applied Radiophysics.

Bochud’s lab measured levels of polonium up to 20 times higher than it is used to detecting.

Death

Arafat died in France on November 11, 2004 at the age of 75 after falling sick a month earlier, but doctors were unable to specify the cause of death and no post-mortem was carried out at the time.

In November 2012, his remains were exhumed and samples taken, partly to investigate whether he had been poisoned with polonium — a suspicion that grew after the assassination in that manner of Russian ex-spy and Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko in London in 2006.

Since Arafat’s death, Palestinian society has long given currency to the rumour that he was murdered, with Israel the party most often blamed.

But there has never been any proof.

- © AFP, 2013

Read: Former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was poisoned by radioactive polonium >

Read: Experts exhume remains of Yasser Arafat >

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:38 AM

    While there may not be any conclusive proof right now, poisoning with polonium 210 would point towards the likely culprit being a secret service. Given the victim, you would have to place the Mossad at the top of your list of suspects.

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    Mute Mick Jordan.
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:27 AM

    Werejammin. The only country known to have used Polonium as a poison is Russia. So it is not inconsevible that the FSB supplied one of Arafat’s inner circle with it.

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:38 AM

    It is not inconceivable, but it is also not likely.

    Didn’t you also claim that Iran would threaten to nuke the strait of hormuz if it obtained the bomb?

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    Mute Mick Jordan.
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:41 AM

    Well considering that the Russians are denying he was poisoned at all seems a little strange does it not.

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    Mute Sean South
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:12 PM

    Mick
    Do you think theres a possibility it could be Israel and would you agree that in most peoples minds Israel is the first country that would come to mind?

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    Mute Mick Jordan.
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:21 PM

    Very could be Sean. But as of yet the only known country to have used Polonium as a assassination weapon are the Russians. And we know that poisoning is a favored method of the Russians and their allies ie: Markov and Yeushekio.

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    Mute Sean South
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:29 PM

    Yea…I have to say im not sure myself and the arguements for both sides are quite good….it will be interesting

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    Mute Mick Jordan.
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:37 PM

    And for it to have been the Israelis they would have had to have turned one of Arafat’s inner circle. People that were with him for years. Is that likely? Where as one of his inner circle disgruntled with his corruption and his negotiations with the Israelis would be more realistic. And they would have had contacts within the FSB going back to decades when it was the KGB. Plus the fact if he was killed by Polonium it would have been a couple of years before Litvininko was killed. Coincidence that both were killed by the same stuff?

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    Mute Noble Gas
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:26 PM

    Can they not look at isotope ratios to determine the reactor source. I bet they could it came from a Israeli or Russian reactor based on the presence of Po 208 or 209 etc.

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    Mute mattoid
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:59 PM

    So tell us werejammin’, if your theory is correct how exactly did Mossad get close enough to Arafat to administer the Polonium?

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 8th 2013, 4:58 PM

    and if he cant does that prove you right ?? if an average working man cant tell you how one of the worlds most secretive,murdering agencies carry out their operations then of course they must not have done it….IDIOT

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    Mute Brian Hicks
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    Nov 8th 2013, 6:07 PM

    What would’ve been gained by the Israelis? His power was waning on the international stage…and if they were going to do it, why wait until he was 75 rather than 65 or 55 when he was at the height of his power? True that polomium would be very hard to come by, but as stated above the only known users of this method are the Russians. Could Mossad have done it…of course. But you have to ask why…what would be gained? There certainly isn’t a softer and more flexible PLA or Hamas since his demise…

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    Mute mattoid
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    Nov 8th 2013, 9:28 PM

    @Gerard
    Oh I see how this works…
    I ask a question that is awkward but perfectly legitimate (given the practical difficulties Mossad would have in getting close enough to administer a fatal dose of polonium to Arafat – without also poisoning anyone else in his family or inner circle).
    It’s a question that would actually add a small bit more credibility to werejammin’s theory if he could answer it.
    But I’m supposed to be the idiot for asking the question.
    Nice work Gerard, you’re a real live wire.

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:09 PM

    you are an idiot for the simple reason that you expect him to know how mossad operates,you are an idiot for not knowing that just because we cant see the way doesnt mean there isnt a way !!! it was all in the first comment,you are a complete clown i mean i dont know how a car engine works but i still know a car moves,get over yourself asking the man to explain the operational procedures of a secret servic and you did it with a view to discrediting him !!!

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 9th 2013, 1:20 PM

    Tried to discredit him by asking him a question??
    Get a life will ya!

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 9th 2013, 1:31 PM

    yeah have you really never heard someone try to discredit another person by asking awkward,redundant questions ??? i think its you that needs a life,you seem to have experanced little !!!

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 9th 2013, 2:25 PM

    When trying assess the most likely perpetrators of this apparent poisoning its important to look at a range of factors including, but not limited to:
    1) Motive. Cui bono? In this case it would appear that hardline Palestinians would have far more to gain than Israel from getting rid of Arafat.
    2) Opportunity. It would be extremely difficult for Mossad to poison Arafat, and Arafat alone given all his personal security and the inner circle surrounding him. It would also seem likely that his own ‘trusted’ countrymen would have greater opportunity to carry it out, hence my question.
    3) Where did the polonium come from?
    Nobody knows that yet. We know that Russia (alone among nations) has a track record of polonium poisonings but of course that doesn’t necessarily prove involvement (although you have to admit that its strange that Russia are denying that Arafat was poisoned at all).

    Look, I don’t know who did this any more than the next person, but these are all factors that need to be considered.

    Sorry if your brain doesn’t seem to be capable of comprehending that.

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 9th 2013, 2:40 PM

    see what did you have to go and leave the childish comment at the end my stupid,slow witted friend ?? you made a reasonable point,presented it well and then ruined it right at the last second,your mother msut be a saint !! im not saying any of that is wrong or right,i just said i didnt like the way mattoid implied that if the other commenter couldnt explain how mossad carried it out then it wasnt them,absence of proof isnt proof of absence,can you understand that ?? so stop rambling on with your nonsense talk

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 9th 2013, 3:30 PM

    Have a re-read of the thread and see who was the first to lob in a casual insult Ger lad….

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 9th 2013, 3:32 PM

    Hint – it wasn’t me that called Mattiod an “IDIOT”

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 9th 2013, 4:34 PM

    mattoid is an idiot !!!! i am on about the tewo of us,i thought you made a reasonable point even if i did or did not agree with it,but then you spoilt it right at the end !! so yeah it was you who said it first,unless you and mattoid are a couple or a team that i should know about ??

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    Mute Ricky Spanish
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:30 AM

    Perhaps he was getting too close to a peacefull solution for Israel to tolerate.

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    Mute colin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:46 PM

    Damn you Ricky Spanish…….

    Didn’t read your comment but you got a green thumb from me for your name & pic!!

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    Mute Richard Keogh
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:56 PM

    Why would Israel want him dead, the non Palestinian Arafat was robbing the Palestinians blind with millions being creamed off to accounts abroad. He was weak and a divisive figure within the ruling class of the PLO. Even the extremely anti-Israel BBC acknowledge that if, and it’s a big if, he was bumped off it is far more likely to have been by Palestinians who had access to him and to the Russians.

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    Mute Gerard Tuohy
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    Nov 8th 2013, 4:59 PM

    BBC anti isreali ???? hahahahahaha you are a waste of a good underpants !!!

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    Mute Larry O'Connor
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:00 AM

    Considering Ariel Sharon threatened to kill him only two months before hand and it happened while the Israeli’s had him cornered in one room of his compound, I think it would be fair to say it was them.

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    Mute Eel Knack Mole
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:11 AM

    While I have no doubt that Israel are capable of having done this – Sharon in particular – I simply don’t see the advantages in them having done so. Yes, Sharon is rumoured to have discussed killing him, but the general belief was that it would serve no purpose but to blacken Israel’s image and spark retribution from the Palestinian side. Hamas on the other hand had much to gain, he was very much in their way and his lifestyle was considered an affront to more extreme elements of Islam.

    On a side point, mostly unrelated, I note that though he was given only days to live originally, Ariel Sharon is still in a permanent vegetative state after 7 years. Remarkable.

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    Mute Gavin Lawlor
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:23 AM

    Maybe they thought they wouldn’t be blamed and it would look like a natural death. It almost worked too. If it was them.

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    Mute margaret
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:39 AM

    Palestinians have said Israel is the only suspect in Arafat’s death.

    Well they would say that, wouldn’t they.
    It’s not in their nature to look inwards, to contemplate a alternative scenario, Arafat was not beloved by all Palestinians, indeed some would have thrown him off a building if they had a chance. But blame Israel because the simplistic nature if blameing Israel for everything fits in with the narrative of Palestinian being the eternal victim so therefore the western leftists’ best friend and cause.

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    Mute Ricky Spanish
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:45 AM

    The poison used it not common or easily available.

    Its previous use has been by western clandestine for years.

    Its not likely that a rogue palestinian faction would have access to polonium..
    Mossad do though.

    Think about it.

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:16 PM

    Didn’t realise Russia was now classed as part of the West…

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    Mute Brian Hicks
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    Nov 8th 2013, 6:14 PM

    True that Avina…or that Russia had no relationships or interests in the region!

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    Mute Eel Knack Mole
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:48 AM

    It seems quite convenient to blame Israel, but his Palestinian rivals had much more to gain from his death. As a relative moderate he was quite useful to Israel. After his death his more extreme rivals on the Palestinian side, many of whom despised him,climbed to power. I would be looking in the direction of Hamas first.

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    Mute Richard O'Neill
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:39 AM

    Whilst I fully accept Israel would have wanted him dead, I don’t believe it was them for three reasons.

    Firstly, polonium is the weapon of choice for the Russians so look closer to their Arab friends in the region. Secondly, the Israelis wouldn’t get caught. And thirdly, it’s far too obvious a crime for Israel for them to do it and if they were to do it refer back to point 2.

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:45 AM

    On your second point Richard, the israelis haven’t been caught, and there are instances before of them being sloppy e.g. the assasination in Dubai.

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    Mute Richard O'Neill
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:49 AM

    At this high a level, where the finger would immediately be pointed at Israel, I dont believe Mossad would use anything that would leave a trace. Especially a decade later.

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    Mute Johnny Reynolds
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    Nov 8th 2013, 6:31 PM

    @richard – the Israelis do what they want, who’s goin to stop them. Also, using the mentioned substance makes people think it was the Russians that did it.

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    Mute Slow Harry
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:56 AM

    Obviously Israel are going to get the blame for this but how about 2 more theories.
    1. Hamas and Fatah were having a de facto civil war so no love lost there with Hamas coming to the fore after Arafts death.
    2. He did siphon around a billion dollars from the Palestinian people so that’s motive enough and would make it worth finding some radioactive poison

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:30 AM

    Hope Tirawi never gets to do jury service…

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    Mute Obama bin Laden
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:38 AM

    Why is that?

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:56 AM

    Errr – because he’s saying that Israel are the only suspects despite the fact that there is zero evidence to support this claim and the fact that Arafat had many different enemies (including quite a few from within the Palestinian people, although its debatable whether they would have had access to the material).

    Israel might well have done it, but the point is there’s insufficient evidence to say either way. In actual fact there is quite a bit of scientific disagreement over whether that was even the cause of death anyway.

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    Mute Briny Boy
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:22 AM

    He’s also calling it the ‘crime of the 21st century’ which is just laughable. In the grand scheme of things, Arafat was no loss to civilised society.

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    Mute Tony Clifton
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:49 PM

    Dint even think about a accusing is Israel or you will labelled an anti – Semite

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    Mute mattoid
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    Nov 8th 2013, 1:52 PM

    You’re the first one to mention anti-semitism on this thread Tony

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    Mute Tony Clifton
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    Nov 8th 2013, 2:09 PM

    Its the same crap all the time when it comes to Israel.
    They treat the Palestinians terrible constantly trying to invade Syria but nobody is allowed question any if this.

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    Mute Shanti Om
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:38 PM

    I would agree – the investigator is jumping the gun a bit.
    They have moderate evidence that he was poisoned, and while Israel may well be among the suspects, stating that you have deemed someone guilty at the outset of your investigations really just proves that a confirmation bias is present. It effectively makes the investigation too easy to dismiss if they claim to prove anything.

    It’s a poorly thought out move on the Palestinian side.

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    Mute Kris O Kay Kay
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:19 AM

    He was forever on his mobile…was he not aware of the dangers….ah well…

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    Mute Pat Casey
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:03 AM

    The biggest problem that was left after Arafat’s death was where he had hidden the details to his Swiss bank accounts that held the aid money that was supposed to help his own people.

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    Mute micheal285
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:50 AM

    It’s staring ye all in the face that it’s an inside job : blame who u like : power struggle and a dodgy wife who wudnt agree to an autopsy !!!

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    Mute King Olaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:14 AM

    The only thing I don’t get is when assassinating such a high profile figure, wouldn’t it be safe to assume that a thorough autopsy would be done.

    So using polonium 210, which is a difficult to obtain substance, firstly indicates that it is most likely a state sponsored killing and secondly is a detectable way of doing it.

    So just to play Devils advocate here…why would Israel use a method that would almost definitely be linked to them? There are far more efficent and vague ways of assassination. Could it be that Arafat was assassinated by someone closer to his own side in order to increase to growing international pressure on Israel? He was old and sick…possibly viewed as expendable.

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    Mute Peter 'Nocky' Naughnane
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:17 AM

    His wife declined an autopsy at the time.

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    Mute King Olaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:30 AM

    But it was still a fairly sure thing that one would be held and it did happen.

    Again, I have no “side” in the debate but in Arafat’s culture martyrdom is considered one of the best ways to die…maybe he knew he was being poisoned. Maybe his wife did. I find it odd that as someone who would have been surrounded by family and friends all the time, that no one else had radiation poisoning.

    The only way it works is through eat, drinking or breathing it. Aside from inhaling it, in Arabic culture food is eaten and shared around a table. So there should have been a high chance that someone else ingested it too.

    Its a puzzling case anyways.

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:20 PM

    His wife has also refused to point the finger at Israel

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    Mute rotund jocularity
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:31 AM

    ‘Results neither confirm or deny….’ clearly bang to rights

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:11 PM

    Having someone tried and convincted in the mind without a shred of evidence is the mentality of the mob.
    Unfortunately there’s plenty of ‘em on here…

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    Mute William Grogan
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:45 AM

    18 times the normal background level of any radioactive substance, particularly a very rare one, will not kill you.

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 10:55 AM

    Polonium 210 has a half life of 138 days willie i.e. it has being decaying by half every 4-5 months since his poisoning 9 years ago. Only one atom in a million of the original dose would still be detectable and its still at 18 times the normal level.

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    Mute William Grogan
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:09 AM

    Well “18 times normal” is at best ambiguous. I think it means that 18 times what one would expect taking into account the half life and the time since death. Otherwise it means nothing.

    How would the Israelis have got to Arafat? He was surrounded by 700+ of his fighters.

    Arafat was a terrorist. It’s quite likely he got contaminated by being in contact with the material for nefarious purposes. I’m sure the amount of TNT in his body was higher than normal as well.

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:50 AM

    “. I think it means that 18 times what one would expect taking into account the half life and the time since death. ”

    Nope, the samples were 18 times higher than normal when tested, 9 years after the dosage.

    “Arafat was a terrorist. It’s quite likely he got contaminated by being in contact with the material for nefarious purposes”

    And how would this happen, considering at the likely time of the poisoning he was trapped in a single room in a compound for months, surrounded by Israelis?

    Clutching at straws to suit your views of the man willie?

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    Mute William Grogan
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:54 AM

    I would go a step further and say that anybody that reported such a vague and ambiguous statement as 18 times normal would lose my confidence.

    Arafat was surrounded by 700 of his own men and they were surrounded by Israelis.

    Jumping to conclusions wereguessing?

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    Mute werejammin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:08 PM

    “I would go a step further and say that anybody that reported such a vague and ambiguous statement as 18 times normal would lose my confidence.”

    LOL!

    10-20 times is ‘ambiguous’, 18 is not.

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    Mute Avina Laaf
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:15 PM

    where do the swiss scientists say that werejammin’, or is that just your chosen interpretation?

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    Mute William Grogan
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:32 PM

    Actually 10-20 times or saying 18 times with a margin error of 20% is more accurate. Didn’t you pay attention in the lab class?

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    Mute William Grogan
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    Nov 9th 2013, 2:57 PM

    Just read that Russian scientists who also ran tests on Arafat, “claimed the Polonium level was too low to kill him”

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    Mute Dom AcePlazo
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    Nov 8th 2013, 11:49 AM

    Oh those Russians.

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    Mute paul breslin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 12:50 PM

    What did Israel have to gain by killing him ? It’s not as if he was going to live forever. He was damn near pretty old. They would have had to consider and prepare the way for a more moderate successor.
    Could there have been collusion with the Palestinian inner circle like Abbas ?
    After all Arafat seemed in many ways more moderate than some Palestinian groups so changing leadership would carry risks unless they actually wanted a more extreme group to succeed and so forever put off peace talks about a final solution. Plausible I suppose.
    In any case murder usually has a motive especially state murder so what would it be ?

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    Mute Jim Walsh
    Favourite Jim Walsh
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    Nov 8th 2013, 5:09 PM

    Too much speculation on not enough facts.

    Lots of people wanted Arafat out of the way. To say that there is only one suspect is disingenuous but it would possibly too politically risky to indicate a suspicions of other Palestinian groups.

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    Mute Won Hung Loh
    Favourite Won Hung Loh
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    Nov 8th 2013, 4:14 PM

    No, no those nice Israelis would never dream of doing such a thing. Just ask Mr Modai.

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    Mute David Platkin
    Favourite David Platkin
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    Nov 8th 2013, 7:41 PM

    And I just saw Elvis wandering down the street eating a hot dog. Why not blame the Americans? They’re easy marks.

    1
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