Arafat political heir accused of poisoning the former Palestinian leader in 2004



JERUSALEM // In a bizarre attack on Mohammed Dahlan, the one-time heir apparent to Yasser Arafat is being accused of poisoning to death the late Palestinian fighter who became president.

A report released on Sunday by members of the West Bank's ruling Fatah faction says Mr Dahlan, 49, sent poison disguised as medicine to Arafat before he died in a Paris hospital in 2004.

Mr Dahlan, who was expelled from Fatah in June, had for months argued publicly with the faction's chairman, Mahmoud Abbas, who also serves as president of the Palestinian Authority.

While claiming that he also stole US$300 million (Dh1.1bn) for Palestinian security forces, the report's timing and ambiguity raises speculation of a politically motivated attack on Mr Dahlan by his estranged allies.

Compiled by senior Fatah members who were apparently supportive of his ouster from the faction, the report offers few details other than Mr Dalhan's alleged ordering of Arafat's bodyguards to burn the poisoned medicine vials.

In a telephone interview with the Associated Press yesterday, Mr Dahlan disputed the report and described the accusations as little more than a political sideshow.

"There are false and baseless accusations of Abbas and his people, they are clearing Israel of Arafat's blood," he said, referring to general Palestinian suspicion of Israeli involvement in Arafat's mysterious death.

"If Abbas spent his time preparing for independence instead of fighting me, he would have won."

Mr Dahlan has long been a source of scorn for Palestinians, many of whom equate perceptions of his extravagant lifestyle with general corruption among their political elites.

In 2007, he fell out of favour with the Palestinian leaders when Hamas rivals overran the US-backed security forces that he headed in the Gaza Strip.

His feud with the Palestinian president erupted into public view late last year when he criticised Mr Abbas and his family's business dealings.

Unconfirmed reports went as far as to accuse Mr Dahlan of attempting to build a private militia in a grab for power.

In December, a report said the Palestinian Authority shut down a television station that he owned, before his blacklisting that month, from participating in Fatah Central Committee meetings.

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6pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,400m; 6.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh80,000 (T) 1,200m

7pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Handicap (PA) Dh70,000 (T) 2,200m

7.30pm: Handicap (TB) Dh100,000 (PA) 1,400m

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YEMEN: “The developments we have seen are promising. We really hope that the parties are going to respect the agreed ceasefire. I think that the sense of really having the political will to have a peace process is vital. There is a little bit of hope and the role that the UN has played is very important.”

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5pm: Maiden | Dh80,000 |  1,600m
Winner: AF Al Moreeb, Tadhg O’Shea (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer)

5.30pm: Handicap |  Dh80,000 |  1,600m
Winner: AF Makerah, Adrie de Vries, Ernst Oertel

6pm: Handicap |  Dh80,000 |  2,200m
Winner: Hazeme, Richard Mullen, Jean de Roualle

6.30pm: Handicap |  Dh85,000 |  2,200m
Winner: AF Yatroq, Brett Doyle, Ernst Oertel

7pm: Shadwell Farm for Private Owners Handicap |  Dh70,000 |  2,200m
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7.30pm: Handicap (TB) |  Dh100,000 |  1,600m
Winner: Treasured Times, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly

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Director: Brady Corbet

Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn

Rating: 3.5/5

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Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
The Bio

Ram Buxani earned a salary of 125 rupees per month in 1959

Indian currency was then legal tender in the Trucial States.

He received the wages plus food, accommodation, a haircut and cinema ticket twice a month and actuals for shaving and laundry expenses

Buxani followed in his father’s footsteps when he applied for a job overseas

His father Jivat Ram worked in general merchandize store in Gibraltar and the Canary Islands in the early 1930s

Buxani grew the UAE business over several sectors from retail to financial services but is attached to the original textile business

He talks in detail about natural fibres, the texture of cloth, mirrorwork and embroidery 

Buxani lives by a simple philosophy – do good to all

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5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons

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Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams

Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season

Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season

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UPI facts

More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions

Brief scores:

Toss: Sindhis, elected to field first

Kerala Knights 103-7 (10 ov)

Parnell 59 not out; Tambe 5-15

Sindhis 104-1 (7.4 ov)

Watson 50 not out, Devcich 49

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Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5