Wednesday, Nov 10, 2004
Wednesday, Nov 10, 2004 |
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By Vaiju Naravane
PARIS, NOV. 9. The sudden emergence of Yasser Arafat's estranged wife Suha by her husband's bedside and her stubborn refusal to allow the PLO leadership to intervene in matters concerning his health have set tongues wagging. Several French dailies today carried front-page articles about the struggle over Mr. Arafat's alleged hidden wealth. "The PLO's hidden money at the heart of the succession," headlined right-wing Le Figaro. Left-leaning Liberation suggested: "Suha is reportedly interested only in Arafat's fortune," while the respected independent daily Le Monde said: " The PLO's secret money, key to the succession."
Money laundering
Quoting a report by the International Monetary Fund and comments appearing in the Israeli media, French newspapers indicated that over $900 million had been diverted from PLO funds. The Paris prosecutor's office last year directed the central anti-fraud bureau to look into alleged money laundering involving Ms. Arafat (whom Palestinians have nicknamed Mrs Sous-sous or Mrs Under-Under as in "under the table"). The Bank of France was, in fact, alarmed by several transfers amounting to 11.5 million euros between July 2002 and July 2003 from Swiss banks into Ms. Arafat's accounts with the Arab Bank and the Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP). In addition, a recent IMF report mentions that 600 million euros have gone missing from the accounts of the Palestinian Authority. After repeated calls by donor countries for greater transparency in the PA's complex network of transfers and placements, the Palestinians finally accepted a former IMF expert Salam Fayad as finance chief.
Complex web
The IMF report says the money was diverted from the Palestinian Authority to secret bank accounts through a complex web of transactions. Money was collected through secret levies on the import of essential products such as petrol, cement, tobacco and other consumer articles by the Palestinian Commercial Services Company, which was run by Mohamed Rashid alias Khaled Slam. Mr. Rashid, who is part of Ms. Arafat's inner circle along with the Interior Minister, Mohamed Dahlan, is also part of the "new" bunch of leaders — ambitious, street smart, and not ideology driven like the Palestinian old guard.
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