Arafat Nephew to Get Hospital File
PARIS — French authorities said Thursday that they would release the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s medical records to his nephew, a Palestinian Authority official who then could resolve lingering questions about the cause of Arafat’s death.
French officials say the law prevents them from making Arafat’s records public, and they have refused to reveal the cause of his death Nov. 11 at a military hospital outside Paris. The lack of information has provided fertile ground for rumors in the Arab world that Arafat was poisoned, despite official denials.
Arafat’s nephew, Nasser Kidwa, is the Palestinian representative to the United Nations, and giving him the records offers France a way to abide by medical privacy laws while responding to the Palestinian Authority’s efforts to determine the cause of Arafat’s death.
In the West Bank city of Ramallah, Palestinian Cabinet Secretary Hassan abu Libdeh said Kidwa would travel to Paris today.
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