Israeli Assault Transforms Arafat's Image In Muslim World

by N. Janardhan

For more than 30 years, Yasser Arafat has dominated the Palestinian national struggle.

First, he was the leader of the armed resistance of which he was a founding member. Then, he became the champion of what he called his "peace of the brave." And for years now, he is the would-be president of his Palestinian state-in-the-making -- all enough qualification to justify "Mr Palestine" title.

Loved and respected as he has been, Arafat, 72, has been through rough times too -- hated by his some of his people and condemned for the actions of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) he heads.

But in the last few months, the bitter image of recent years has been transformed into heroic proportions since Arafat was put under virtual house arrest by his arch foe, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, and humiliated by being deprived of even water and electricity in his Ramallah headquarters.

"When Arafat used to receive a red-carpet welcome in the White House and shake hands with U.S. presidents and Israeli prime ministers and tour countries as the most travelled leader in the world, many Arabs, particularly Palestinians, shunned him," a commentary in Dubai's "Gulf News" said this week.

"But when Sharon got after him with the house arrest, siege, bombing of his headquarters and even exile plans, Arafat suddenly turned into a real hero throughout the Arab and Islamic worlds," it added.

Indeed, "Arafat's talks with the U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was from a position of strength with his personal standing far higher than it has been for years. Right now, he has the undivided support of Palestinians and Arabs, which has not always been the case," it said.

A fortnight ago, Arafat said on the Qatar-based Arabic television network Al Jazeera: "They (Israelis) want me either an exile, a prisoner, or dead. But I tell them: A martyr, a martyr, a martyr!"

Those words have captivated the minds of Palestinians and viewers across the region. Special broadcasts on this theme are flourishing on the Middle Eastern television networks, such as 'Under Siege' on Al Jazeera, or 'Despite the Siege' and 'Above the Siege' on Palestinian stations. Palestinian television has raised the number of daily broadcasts with live phone-ins.

"These are all spontaneous calls in support of Arafat," Shehnaz Khafafi, an Egyptian working as a translator in a government office in the United Arab Emirates, said in an interview.

"Some are calling him the (former Egyptian president Jamal Abdul) Nasser of this age and others the new Omar Ibn Al Khattab," he said, referring to the 10th caliph in Islam who received the keys to Jerusalem.

"There is unity without precedent around President Arafat in the Arab world. It is stronger than what he had in Beirut in 1982," explained Maher Al Rayes, head of Palestinian broadcasting. He was referring to the last time Arafat was besieged by Sharon-backed Christian militia in the Sabra and Shatila camps.

Jordan's King Abdullah's tribute to Arafat as "a hero of all time in the Middle East" was given wide coverage in the Middle Eastern media last week. "We in Jordan do not recognize any leadership that would replace the legitimate and elected Palestinian leadership headed by Yasser Arafat," Abdullah said.

Sharon's treatment of Arafat has succeeded in silencing virtually all opposition to him, some Palestinians say, and even the militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad that were opposed to him in the past have not been as harsh.

Mohammed Al Ghobaisi, a student and Palestinian activist in the UAE, agreed: "Hamas and Jihad were more popular and were able to destroy Arafat's reputation. But now a new wind is blowing."

This new standing is such that one Ramallah resident told the UAE's largest-selling Arabic daily 'Al Khaleej': "If anyone stands before the Palestinian people and tries to take Arafat's place, we will hang him at the Manara Square," referring to the city's main square where Palestinian collaborators with Israel have been hanged.

Even Arafat's forced absence at the Arab summit in Beirut in March was seen as victory for the Palestinian leader. By saying he would stay in Ramallah before the siege, he indicated that he would not give in to pressure and harassment despite the personal cost to him -- and this boosted his popularity.

Arafat also made gains from the sympathy the average Arab felt about his plight.

"Arab leaders were made to look embarrassed and impotent in the eyes of the people. The Arab street wondered why Arafat was not rescued by his brothers and why the US had once again remained a biased spectator," Palestinian analyst Eyad Assaraj was quoted as saying.

On the flip side, Arafat has been rebuked for cronyism, corruption, the brutalities of his police and his disregard for "Palestinian democracy".

Just a few months ago, the Palestinian leader appeared so out of step with his people. There was scant belief in Arafat's overseas mission or in international diplomacy.

The absence of Arafat's wife Suha from the scene of the 'intifadah' had also embittered ordinary Palestinians who had expected their first lady to remain by their side. Instead, she is believed to have spent most of the 'intifadah' in Paris, with their only child.

Suha too had been critical of the PNA. The daughter of a wealthy Christian family, Suha converted to Islam after their secret marriage in 1990. In an interview in Riyadh's 'Sayidaty' magazine last month, Suha said she had grown closer with her husband, who is suffering from early stages of Parkinson's disease, despite disagreements that she said included her efforts to stamp out corruption in the PNA.

Many see the 'intifadah' not only as a product born out of rage at the Israelis, but also out of anger at the disastrous state of the PNA. Anger over unemployment and poor living conditions was compounded by the visible signs of wealth displayed by many within the Palestinian leadership, mostly those who had been in exile with Arafat in Tunis.

Israeli papers last week criticised the way Arafat had ruled the Palestinian areas and said the present crisis would not have happened had he governed differently.

Hussam Khader, a leader of Arafat's Fatah movement from Balata refugee camp in Nablus, said Arafat has acted on "the poor advice of some people around him who are responsible for his present ordeal". He asked Arafat "to clean the Palestinian home" by getting rid of "the corrupt who advise him to act against his people in order to please Israel and the U.S."

In the Israeli newspaper Maariv on Tuesday, Arab affairs analyst Oded Granot said of Sharon's proposals for a peace conference even without Arafat: "Despite all the criticism of Arafat that has been expressed in closed Palestinian circles, the Palestinian who would take Arafat's place at such a conference, and accept less than he would in a permanent settlement, has not been born."