Arafat

Arafat most commonly refers to Yasser Arafat, a prominent Palestinian political leader and a central figure in the Palestinian national movement during the late 20th century. Born Mohammed Yasser Abdel Rahman Abdel Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa in 1929 in Cairo to a Palestinian family that had become refugees, he helped shape Palestinian political life for decades. He was a founder of Fatah in 1959 and led the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), established in 1964, as its chairman from 1969 until his death in 2004. Under his leadership the PLO became the main umbrella organization representing Palestinians and pursued a strategy that evolved from armed struggle to diplomacy.

Arafat played a pivotal role in the Oslo peace process. In 1993, he and Israeli leaders Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres signed the Oslo Accords, which created a framework for Palestinian self-rule in parts of the West Bank and Gaza and laid the groundwork for future negotiations toward a final settlement. In 1994 he received the Nobel Peace Prize alongside Rabin and Peres for their contributions to the peace process. Following the accords, he served as president of the Palestinian Authority, overseeing limited self-government in parts of the Palestinian territories, while critics highlighted concerns about governance, corruption, and the pace of peace progress.

Arafat died on November 11, 2004, in a hospital in Clamart, France. Officially attributed to a sudden illness, with reports of a stroke, his death has also been the subject of speculation and investigations regarding possible poisoning, though no conclusive evidence has emerged. His legacy remains a defining and contested element of modern Palestinian politics.