RAMALLAH, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian engineers have started working to exhume late leader Yasser Arafat's remains in the West Bank city of Ramallah at dawn Tuesday, sources said.
The sources added that the engineers started removing sand around the tomb. Four meters beneath it, a movable layer of cement is located. The sand was brought from Jerusalem when Arafat was buried here on April 11, 2004.
The remains will be dug up within one hour with senior Palestinian officials attending the process along with experts and investigators from Switzerland, France and Russia, the sources added.
Tight security measures were taken to ensure the secrecy of the process.
The investigation aims to find out if Arafat's death in a French hospital resulted from poisoning. The Palestinians suspect that Israel had poisoned Arafat when he was besieged in his Ramallah headquarters before falling ill.
Earlier this year, Swiss experts tested Arafat's personal belongings as part of a documentary aired by al-Jazeera, the Doha-based pan-Arab TV channel. The report cited the Institute of Radiation Physics as saying that traces of radioactive polonium-210 were found on Arafat's underwear and toothbrush.
Arafa's widow, Suha, filed a civil lawsuit at a French hospital asking for a murder investigation into her husband's death. The Palestinian leadership also decided to bring in the Russians for more credible inquiry.
GAZA, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- The heart of Khadija Arafat, sister of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, was full of sadness, just hours before international experts will dig up the remains of her brother from his tomb in the West Bank city of Ramallah to know the reasons behind his death.
The 80-year-old younger sister of Arafat lives lonely in an apartment in Gaza city with only her assistant as companion. In an interview with Xinhua, she said that she strongly opposes the opening of her brother's tomb and taking samples of his remains.Full story
RAMALLAH, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- Swiss experts have examined the tomb of late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in the West Bank in preparation for digging up his remains on Tuesday, Palestinian sources said Monday.
Experts from the Lausanne-based Institute of Radiation Physics on Sunday evening secretly examined the grave, which was near the Palestinian leadership's Ramallah headquarters, the sources told Xinhua. Such inspections happened for the second time in a week.Full story
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