Post by Salem6 on Oct 4, 2003 10:16:45 GMT
Profile: Yasser Arafat
For decades Yasser Arafat has been the leader of the Palestinian people's struggle for statehood.
He has carried on his shoulders the burden of that struggle. But, his refusal to share power or delegate responsibility, however, has taken a toll on his health and often damaged his popular support.
Arafat: Both asset and liability for the Palestinian cause
When the Oslo peace process failed to live up to expectations, more and more Palestinians lost patience with his mercurial and dictatorial style of leadership.
However, in an ironic twist of fate, Mr Arafat has won back a lot of Palestinian support thanks to Israel's attempts to sideline him.
He has been confined to his battered headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah by Israeli forces since December 2001. The siege has come to be regarded as a potent symbol of the draconian measures exacted by the Israeli Government.
From his earliest days, Mr Arafat has indulged in the weaving of myths about his life, insisting, for example, that he was born in Jerusalem even though his birth, in 1929, is clearly recorded in Egypt.
As a young man he was, according to one biographer, "a natural publicist" and a workaholic. At the same time, he developed an obsessive desire to be leader of the pack and to get his way.
Personal war
As early as 1959, as Palestinian exiles in Kuwait were forming Fatah, later to be the biggest group within the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Mr Arafat was only playing lip service to the idea of collective leadership.
Two years later his contemporaries noticed how he "exercised total control over the Fatah war chest and how he bribed people to join him".
Led by Arafat, the PLO forced their way onto the world stage through violence
But he also did more than anyone else to put the Palestinians' cause on the world agenda.
Arab regimes were clearly not prepared to act to help the Palestinians so, led by Mr Arafat, the PLO took up arms themselves, hijacking airliners and committing other acts of violence.
As a military leader, Mr Arafat often led the way into action against the Israelis. When backs were against the wall, when he took on Israel at Karameh in 1968, or Jordan in September 1970 or under siege in Beirut in 1982, Mr Arafat never lacked personal courage.
His goal has always been independence for the Palestinians, with himself as president.
Power struggle
The most recent challenge to Mr Arafat's total control over the Palestinians came in the form of Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, a fellow PLO member.
Following US-led pressure to reform the Palestinian Authority from within, Abu Mazen was appointed prime minister in May 2003.
Abu Mazen locked horns with the Palestinian leader and lost
As both prime minister and also the PLO's secretary general, Abu Mazen was the most senior Palestinian leader after Mr Arafat himself, and as such of great symbolic importance for most Palestinians.
Crucially he was backed by the Bush administration, which resolutely refuse to deal with Mr Arafat, saying he was "tainted by terrorism". Abu Mazen also seemed to be someone Israel was willing to negotiate with.
But Mr Arafat had not supported Abu Mazen's elevation to the rank of prime minister, and the two clashed over security issues as the Palestinian president failed to give Abu Mazen his full support to take on militant groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
In the ensuing power struggle Mr Arafat won out, using his influence to sideline Abu Mazen until the prime minister resigned early in September.
For decades Yasser Arafat has been the leader of the Palestinian people's struggle for statehood.
He has carried on his shoulders the burden of that struggle. But, his refusal to share power or delegate responsibility, however, has taken a toll on his health and often damaged his popular support.
Arafat: Both asset and liability for the Palestinian cause
When the Oslo peace process failed to live up to expectations, more and more Palestinians lost patience with his mercurial and dictatorial style of leadership.
However, in an ironic twist of fate, Mr Arafat has won back a lot of Palestinian support thanks to Israel's attempts to sideline him.
He has been confined to his battered headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah by Israeli forces since December 2001. The siege has come to be regarded as a potent symbol of the draconian measures exacted by the Israeli Government.
From his earliest days, Mr Arafat has indulged in the weaving of myths about his life, insisting, for example, that he was born in Jerusalem even though his birth, in 1929, is clearly recorded in Egypt.
As a young man he was, according to one biographer, "a natural publicist" and a workaholic. At the same time, he developed an obsessive desire to be leader of the pack and to get his way.
Personal war
As early as 1959, as Palestinian exiles in Kuwait were forming Fatah, later to be the biggest group within the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), Mr Arafat was only playing lip service to the idea of collective leadership.
Two years later his contemporaries noticed how he "exercised total control over the Fatah war chest and how he bribed people to join him".
Led by Arafat, the PLO forced their way onto the world stage through violence
But he also did more than anyone else to put the Palestinians' cause on the world agenda.
Arab regimes were clearly not prepared to act to help the Palestinians so, led by Mr Arafat, the PLO took up arms themselves, hijacking airliners and committing other acts of violence.
As a military leader, Mr Arafat often led the way into action against the Israelis. When backs were against the wall, when he took on Israel at Karameh in 1968, or Jordan in September 1970 or under siege in Beirut in 1982, Mr Arafat never lacked personal courage.
His goal has always been independence for the Palestinians, with himself as president.
Power struggle
The most recent challenge to Mr Arafat's total control over the Palestinians came in the form of Mahmoud Abbas, also known as Abu Mazen, a fellow PLO member.
Following US-led pressure to reform the Palestinian Authority from within, Abu Mazen was appointed prime minister in May 2003.
Abu Mazen locked horns with the Palestinian leader and lost
As both prime minister and also the PLO's secretary general, Abu Mazen was the most senior Palestinian leader after Mr Arafat himself, and as such of great symbolic importance for most Palestinians.
Crucially he was backed by the Bush administration, which resolutely refuse to deal with Mr Arafat, saying he was "tainted by terrorism". Abu Mazen also seemed to be someone Israel was willing to negotiate with.
But Mr Arafat had not supported Abu Mazen's elevation to the rank of prime minister, and the two clashed over security issues as the Palestinian president failed to give Abu Mazen his full support to take on militant groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad.
In the ensuing power struggle Mr Arafat won out, using his influence to sideline Abu Mazen until the prime minister resigned early in September.