Yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography

The year marked a change for Arafat and the PLO, when Arafat gave a speech at the United Nations declaring that all involved parties could live together in peace. The resulting peace process led to the Oslo Accords ofwhich allowed for Palestinian self-rule and elections in the Palestinian territory in which Arafat was elected president.

Around this time, inArafat, at 61 years of age, married a year-old Palestinian Christian, remaining married until his dying day. Regardless of treaties and the best-laid plans between the two parties, peace was always elusive, and, after issuing a second intifada in and the terrorist attacks of September 11,Arafat was confined by Israel to his headquarters in Ramallah.

In OctoberArafat fell ill with flulike symptoms and, his situation worsening, was transported to Paris, France, for medical treatment. He died there the following month, on November In the years since his death, conspiracy theories regarding the true cause of Arafat's demise have abounded, many holding Israel responsible. In Novemberresearchers in Switzerland released a report revealing that tests conducted on Arafat's remains and some of his belongings support the theory that the late Egyptian leader was poisoned.

Evidence from the report suggests that radioactive polonium—a highly toxic substance—had been used. Suha Arafat, Yasser Arafat's widow, supported the findings in media interviews as proof of Arafat's murder. Other authorities, including a Russian medical investigation team called to the case, have maintained that they believe Arafat died of natural causes.

We strive for accuracy and fairness. Fatah's growing presence in Jordan resulted in military clashes with King Hussein 's Jordanian government and in the early s it relocated to Lebanon. There, Fatah assisted the Lebanese National Movement during the Lebanese Civil War and continued its attacks on Israel, resulting in the organization becoming a major target of Israeli invasions during the South Lebanon conflict and Lebanon War.

From toArafat based himself in Tunisia, and began to shift his approach from open conflict with the Israelis to negotiation. Inhe acknowledged Israel's right to exist and sought a two-state solution to the Israeli—Palestinian conflict. Inhe returned to Palestine, settling in Gaza City and promoting self-governance for the Palestinian territories.

He engaged in a series of negotiations with the Israeli government to end the conflict between it and the PLO. At the time, Fatah's support among the Palestinians declined with the growth of Hamas and other militant rivals. In lateafter effectively being confined within his Ramallah compound for over two years by the Israeli army, Arafat fell into a coma and died.

While the cause of Arafat's death has remained the subject of speculation, investigations by Russian and French teams determined no foul play was involved. Arafat remains a controversial figure. Palestinians generally view him as a martyr who symbolized the national aspirations of his people, while many Israelis regarded him as a terrorist.

Arafat was born in CairoEgypt, [ 11 ] on 4 [ 12 ] [ 13 ] or 24 August Arafat's father battled in the Egyptian courts for 25 years to claim family land in Egypt as part of his inheritance but was unsuccessful. Arafat was the second-youngest of seven children and was, along with his younger brother Fathithe only offspring born in Cairo.

Jerusalem was the family home of his mother, Zahwa Abul Saud, who died from a kidney ailment inwhen Arafat was four years of age. Arafat's first visit to Jerusalem came when his father, unable to raise seven children alone, sent Yasser and his brother Fathi to their mother's family in the Mughrabi Quarter of the Old City. They lived there with their uncle Salim Abul Saud for four years.

Intheir father recalled them to be taken care of by their older sister, Inam. Arafat had a deteriorating relationship with his father; when he died inArafat did not attend the funeral, nor did he visit his father's grave upon his return to Gaza. Arafat's sister Inam stated in an interview with Arafat's biographer, British historian Alan Hart, that Arafat was heavily beaten by his yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography for going to the Jewish quarter in Cairo and attending religious services.

When she asked Arafat why he would not stop going, he responded by saying that he wanted to study Jewish mentality. During the Arab—Israeli WarArafat left the university and, along with other Arabs, sought to enter Palestine to join Arab forces fighting against Israeli troops and the creation of the state of Israel. However, instead of joining the ranks of the Palestinian fedayeenArafat fought alongside the Muslim Brotherhoodalthough he did not join the organization.

He took part in combat in the Gaza area which was the main battleground of Egyptian forces during the conflict. In earlythe war was winding down in Israel's favor, and Arafat returned to Cairo due to a lack of logistical support. During his first year as president of the union, the university was renamed Cairo University after a coup was carried out by the Free Officers Movement overthrowing King Farouk I.

By that time, Arafat had graduated with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and was called to duty to fight with Egyptian forces during the Suez Crisis ; however, he never actually fought. Her mother introduced her to him in France, after which she worked as his secretary in Tunis. Mohammed Abdel Rahman was his first name, Abdel Raouf was his father's name and Arafat his grandfather's.

Al-Qudwa was the name of his tribe and al-Husseini was that of the clan to which the al-Qudwas belonged. The al-Husseini clan was based in Gaza and is not related to the well-known al-Husayni clan of Jerusalem. Since Arafat was raised in Cairo, the tradition of dropping the Mohammed or Ahmad portion of one's first name was common; notable Egyptians such as Anwar Sadat and Hosni Mubarak did so.

During the early s, Arafat adopted the name Yasser, and in the early years of Arafat's guerrilla career, he assumed the nom de guerre of Abu Ammar. Both names are related to Ammar ibn Yasirone of Muhammad 's early companions. Although he dropped most of his inherited names, he retained Arafat due to its significance in Islam. Following the Suez Crisis inEgyptian president Gamal Abdel Nasser agreed to allow the United Nations Emergency Force to establish itself in the Sinai Peninsula and Gaza Stripprecipitating the expulsion of all guerrilla or " fedayeen " forces there—including Arafat.

Arafat originally attempted to obtain a visa to Canada and later Saudi Arabiabut was unsuccessful in both attempts. Both would later become Arafat's top aides. Abu Iyad traveled with Arafat to Kuwait in late ; Abu Jihad, also working as a teacher, had already been living there since As Arafat began to develop friendships with Palestinian refugees some of whom he knew from his Cairo dayshe and the others gradually founded the group that became known as Fatah.

The exact date for the establishment of Fatah is unknown. Inthe group's existence was attested to in the pages of a Palestinian nationalist magazine, Filastununa Nida al-Hayat Our Palestine, The Call of Lifewhich was written and edited by Abu Jihad. Fatah dedicated itself to the liberation of Palestine by an armed struggle carried out by Palestinians themselves.

Yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography

This differed from other Palestinian political and guerrilla organizations, most of which firmly believed in a united Arab response. In accordance with his ideology, Arafat generally refused to accept donations to his organization from major Arab governments, in order to act independently of them. He did not want to alienate them, and sought their undivided support by avoiding ideological alliances.

However, to establish the groundwork for Fatah's future financial support, he enlisted contributions from the many wealthy Palestinians working in Kuwait and other Arab states of the Persian Gulfsuch as Qatar where he met Mahmoud Abbas in Arafat continued this process in other Arab countries, such as Libya and Syria. InArafat and his closest companions migrated to Syria—a country sharing a border with Israel—which had recently seceded from its union with Egypt.

Fatah had approximately three hundred members by this time, but none were fighters. Fatah's manpower was incremented further after Arafat decided to offer new recruits much higher salaries than members of the Palestine Liberation Army PLAthe regular military force of the Palestine Liberation Organization PLOwhich was created by the Arab League in On 31 December, a squad from al-AssifaFatah's armed wing, attempted to infiltrate Israel, but they were intercepted and detained by Lebanese security forces.

Several other raids with Fatah's poorly trained and badly-equipped fighters followed this incident. Some were successful, others failed in their missions. Arafat often led these incursions personally. Urabi had been chairing a meeting to ease tensions between Arafat and Palestinian Liberation Front leader Ahmed Jibrilbut neither Arafat nor Jibril attended, delegating representatives to attend on their behalf.

Urabi was killed during or after the yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography amid disputed circumstances. On the orders of Defense Minister Hafez al-Assada close friend of Urabi, Arafat was subsequently arrested, found guilty by a three-man jury and sentenced to death. However, he and his colleagues were pardoned by President Salah Jadid shortly after the verdict.

On 13 NovemberIsrael launched a major raid against the Jordanian administered West Bank town of as-Samuin response to a Fatah-implemented roadside bomb attack which had killed three members of the Israeli security forces near the southern Green Line border. In the resulting skirmish, scores of Jordanian security forces were killed and homes razed.

This raid was one of several factors that led to the Six-Day War. Although Nasser and his Arab allies had been defeated, Arafat and Fatah could claim a victory, in that the majority of Palestinians, who had up to that time tended to align and sympathize with individual Arab governments, now began to agree that a 'Palestinian' solution to their dilemma was indispensable.

Barely a week after the defeat, Arafat crossed the Jordan River in disguise and entered the West Bank, where he set up recruitment centers in Hebronthe Jerusalem area and Nablusand began attracting both fighters and financiers for his cause. At the same time, Nasser contacted Arafat through the former's yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography Mohammed Heikal and Arafat was declared by Nasser to be the "leader of the Palestinians.

Yahya Hammuda took his place and invited Arafat to join the organization. Fatah was allocated 33 of seats of the PLO Executive Committee while 57 seats were left for several other guerrilla factions. ThroughoutFatah and other Palestinian armed groups were the target of a major Israeli army operation in the Jordanian village of Karamehwhere the Fatah headquarters—as well as a mid-sized Palestinian refugee camp —were located.

The town's name is the Arabic word for 'dignity', which elevated its symbolism in the eyes of the Arab peopleespecially after the collective Arab defeat in The operation was in response to attacks, including rockets strikes from Fatah and other Palestinian militias, within the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Though advised by a sympathetic Jordanian Army divisional commander to withdraw his men and headquarters to the nearby hills, Arafat refused, [ 36 ] stating, "We want to convince the world that there are those in the Arab world who will not withdraw or flee.

The goal of the invasion was to destroy Karameh camp and capture Yasser Arafat in reprisal for the attacks by the PLO against Israeli civilians, which culminated in an Israeli school bus hitting a mine in the Negev, killing two children. On a tactical level, the battle went in Israel's favor [ 46 ] and the destruction of the Karameh camp was achieved.

However, his allies—as well as Israeli intelligence —confirm that he urged his men throughout the battle to hold their ground and continue fighting. With mass applause from the Arab worldfinancial donations increased significantly, and Fatah's weaponry and equipment improved. The group's numbers swelled as many young Arabs, including thousands of non-Palestinians, joined the ranks of Fatah.

Arafat was elected chairman on 4 February. In the late s, tensions between Palestinians and the Jordanian government increased greatly; heavily armed Palestinian elements had created a virtual "state within a state" in Jordan, eventually controlling several strategic positions in that country. After their proclaimed victory in the Battle of Karameh, Fatah and other Palestinian militias began taking control of civil life in Jordan.

They set up roadblocks, publicly humiliated Jordanian police forces, molested women and levied illegal taxes—all of which Arafat either condoned or ignored. However, in order to avoid a military confrontation with opposition forces, Hussein dismissed several of his anti-PLO cabinet officials, including some of his own family members, and invited Arafat to become Deputy Prime Minister of Jordan.

Arafat refused, citing his belief in the need for a Palestinian state with Palestinian leadership. Despite Hussein's intervention, militant actions in Jordan continued. After the foreign national hostages were taken off the planes and moved away from them, three of the planes were blown up in front of international press, which took photos of the explosion.

This tarnished Arafat's image in many western nations, including the United States, who held him responsible for controlling Palestinian factions that belonged to the PLO. Arafat, bowing to pressure from Arab governments, publicly condemned the hijackings and suspended the PFLP from any guerrilla actions for a few weeks. The Jordanian government moved to regain control over its territory, and the next day, King Hussein declared martial law.

As the conflict ragedother Arab governments attempted to negotiate a peaceful resolution. Arafat's speech drew sympathy from attending Arab leaders. Other heads of state took sides against Hussein, among them Muammar Gaddafiwho mocked him and his schizophrenic father King Talal. A ceasefire was agreed upon between the two sides, but Nasser died of a massive heart attack hours after the summit, and the conflict resumed shortly afterward.

By 25 September, the Jordanian Army achieved dominance, and two days later Arafat and Hussein agreed to a ceasefire in Amman. The Jordanian Army inflicted heavy casualties on the Palestinians—including civilians—who suffered approximately 3, fatalities. Responding to the threat, in JuneHussein ordered his forces to oust all remaining Palestinian fighters in northern Jordan, which they accomplished.

Arafat and a number of his forces, including two high-ranking commanders, Abu Iyad and Abu Jihadwere forced into the northern corner of Jordan. They relocated near the town of Jerashnear the border with Syria. With the help of Munib Masria pro-Palestinian Jordanian cabinet yasser arafat nobel peace prize biography, and Fahd al-Khomeimi, the Saudi ambassador to Jordan, Arafat managed to enter Syria with nearly two thousand of his fighters.

However, due to the hostility of relations between Arafat and Syrian President Hafez al-Assad who had since ousted President Salah Jadidthe Palestinian fighters crossed the border into Lebanon to join PLO forces in that country, where they set up their new headquarters. Because of Lebanon's weak central government, the PLO was able to operate virtually as an independent state.

Two major incidents occurred in Two days later, various PLO factions retaliated by bombing a bus station, killing eleven civilians. According to Abu Daoud's book, "Arafat was briefed on plans for the Munich hostage-taking. It called for a Palestinian national authority over every part of "liberated" Palestinian territory, [ 66 ] which refers to areas captured by Arab forces in the Arab—Israeli War present-day West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza Strip.

Israel and the US have alleged also that Arafat was involved in the Khartoum diplomatic assassinationsin which five diplomats and five others were killed. A United States Department of State document, declassified inconcluded "The Khartoum operation was planned and carried out with the full knowledge and personal approval of Yasser Arafat.

Israel claimed that Arafat was in ultimate control over these organizations and therefore had not abandoned terrorism. In addition, some circles within the US State Department viewed Arafat as an able diplomat and negotiator who could get support from many Arab governments at once. An example of that, we find in March that Arafat tried to arrange for a meeting between the President of Iraq and the Emir of Kuwait in order to resolve their disputes.

Also inthe PLO was declared the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" and admitted to full membership of the Arab League at the Rabat Summit. In his United Nations address, Arafat condemned Zionism, but said:. Today I have come bearing an olive branch in one hand and a freedom fighter's rifle in another. Do not let the green branch fall from my hand.

He wore a holster throughout his speech, although it did not contain a gun. Following recognition, Arafat established relationships with a variety of world leaders, including Saddam Hussein and Idi Amin. Arafat was Amin's best man at his wedding in Uganda in Although hesitant at first to take sides in the conflict, Arafat and Fatah played an important role in the Lebanese Civil War.

Although originally aligned with Fatah, Syrian President Hafez al-Assad feared a loss of influence in Lebanon and switched sides. Inan alliance of Christian militias with the backing of the Lebanese and Syrian armies besieged Tel al-Zaatar camp in east Beirut. PLO cross-border raids against Israel grew during the late s. One of the most severe—known as the Coastal Road massacre —occurred on 11 March A force of nearly a dozen Fatah fighters landed their boats near a major coastal road connecting the city of Haifa with Tel Aviv-Yafo.

There they hijacked a bus and sprayed gunfire inside and at passing vehicles, killing thirty-seven civilians. After Israel withdrew from Lebanon, cross-border hostilities between PLO forces and Israel continued, though from August to Maythe PLO adopted an official policy of refraining from responding to provocations. Beirut was soon besieged and bombarded by the IDF; [ 77 ] Arafat declared the city to be the " Hanoi and Stalingrad of the Israeli army.

During the war, Arafat took measures to protect the Lebanese Jewish community. Arafat returned to Lebanon a year after his eviction from Beirut, this time establishing himself in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli. This time Arafat was expelled by a fellow Palestinian working under Hafez al-Assad. Arafat did not return to Lebanon after his second expulsion, though many Fatah fighters did.

Arafat and Fatah's center for operations was based in Tunis, the capital of Tunisiauntil In Arafat narrowly survived an Israeli assassination attempt when Israeli Air Force Fs bombed his Tunis headquarters as part of Operation Wooden Legleaving 73 people dead; Arafat had gone out jogging that morning. This was particularly useful during the First Intifada in Decemberwhich began as an uprising of Palestinians against the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The word Intifada in Arabic is literally translated as "tremor"; however, it is generally defined as an uprising or revolt. The first stage of the Intifada began following an incident at the Erez checkpoint where four Palestinian residents of the Jabalya refugee camp were killed in a traffic accident involving an Israeli driver. Rumors spread that the deaths were a deliberate act of revenge for an Israeli shopper who was stabbed to death by a Palestinian in Gaza four days earlier.

Mass rioting broke out, and within weeks, partly upon consistent requests by Abu Jihad, Arafat attempted to direct the uprising, which lasted until — Abu Jihad had previously been assigned the responsibility of the Palestinian territories within the PLO command and, according to biographer Said Aburishhad "impressive knowledge of local conditions" in the Israeli-occupied territories.

On 16 Aprilas the Intifada was raging, Abu Jihad was assassinated in his Tunis household by an Israeli hit squad. Arafat had considered Abu Jihad as a PLO counterweight to local Palestinian leadership in the territories, and led a funeral procession for him in Damascus. The most common tactic used by Palestinians during the Intifada was throwing stones, molotov cocktailsand burning tires.

Israel responded by confiscating large sums of money in house-to-house raids. We are not concerned with what took place in June or in eliminating the consequences of the June war. The Palestinian revolution's basic concern is the uprooting of the Zionist entity from our land and liberating it. Though he had frequently been accused of and associated with terrorism, [ 96 ] [ 97 ] [ 98 ] in speeches on 13 and 14 December Arafat repudiated 'terrorism in all its forms, including state terrorism '.

He accepted UN Security Council Resolution and Israel's right "to exist in peace and security" and [ 99 ] Arafat's statements were greeted with approval by the US administration, which had long insisted on these statements as a necessary starting point for official discussions between the US and the PLO. These remarks from Arafat indicated a shift away from one of the PLO's primary aims—the destruction of Israel as entailed in the Palestinian National Covenant —and toward the establishment of two separate entities: an Israeli state within the armistice lines, and an Arab state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Prior to the Gulf War in —91, when the Intifada's intensity began to wear down, Arafat supported Saddam Hussein 's invasion of Kuwait and opposed the US-led coalition attack on Iraq. He made this decision without the consent of other leading members of Fatah and the PLO. Arafat's decision also severed relations with Egypt and many of the oil-producing Arab states that supported the US-led coalition.

Many in the US also used Arafat's position as a reason to disregard his claims to being a partner for peace. After the end of hostilities, many Arab states that backed the coalition cut off funds to the PLO and began providing financial support for the organization's rival Hamas and other Islamist groups. Two pilots and an engineer were killed; Arafat was bruised and shaken.

In the early s, Arafat and leading Fatah officials engaged the Israeli government in a series of secret talks and negotiations that led to the Oslo Accords. The accords called for a Palestinian police force to be formed from local recruits and Palestinians abroad, to patrol areas of self-rule. Authority over the various fields of rule, including education and culture, social welfaredirect taxation and tourism, would be transferred to the Palestinian interim government.

Both parties agreed also on forming a committee that would establish cooperation and coordination dealing with specific economic sectors, including utilities, industry, trade and communication. Prior to signing the accords, Arafat—as Chairman of the PLO and its official representative—signed two letters renouncing violence and officially recognizing Israel.

It was rejected also by Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan as well as by many Palestinian intellectuals and the local leadership of the Palestinian territories. However, the inhabitants of the territories generally accepted the agreements and Arafat's promise for peace and economic well-being. He insisted that financial support was imperative to establishing this authority and needed it to secure the acceptance of the agreements by the Palestinians living in those areas.

However, Arab states of the Persian Gulf —Arafat's usual source for financial backing—still refused to provide him and the PLO with any major donations for siding with Iraq during the Gulf War. Arafat proceeded with creating a structure for the PNA. He established an executive committee or cabinet composed of twenty members. Arafat also replaced and assigned mayors and city councils for major cities such as Gaza and Nablus.

He began subordinating non-governmental organizations that worked in education, health, and social affairs under his authority by replacing their elected leaders and directors with PNA officials loyal to him. He then appointed himself chairman of the Palestinian financial organization that was created by the World Bank to control most aid money towards helping the new Palestinian entity.

It was mainly composed of PLA soldiers and foreign Palestinian volunteers. Throughout November and DecemberArafat toured dozens of Palestinian cities and towns that were evacuated by Israeli forces including JeninRamallah, al-BirehNablus, Qalqilyah and Tulkarmdeclaring them "liberated". However, because Hamasthe DFLP and other popular opposition movements chose to boycott the presidential elections, the choices were limited.

Arafat's landslide victory guaranteed Fatah 51 of the 88 seats in the PLC. After Arafat was elected to the post of President of the PNA, he was often referred to as the Ra'isliterally president in Arabicalthough he spoke of himself as "the general". Arafat refused to resign his post. Palestinian-Israeli relations grew even more hostile as a result of continued conflict.

Notes [ change change source ]. References [ change change source ]. See here and here for more information. Other websites [ change change source ]. The Fatah Party and their splinter groups. History of Fatah Palestine Liberation Organization. Yasser Arafat Mahmoud Abbas. Political parties in Palestine. Winners of the Nobel Peace Prize.

Gaza StripPalestine. Gaza War Cemetery Israeli razing of cemeteries and necroviolence against Palestinians. Economy of the Gaza Strip Taxation in Palestine. Wadi Gaza Environmental impact of the Israel—Hamas war. Category:Gaza Strip. Time Persons of the Year. Bezos George W.