PA TV: Israel murdered Arafat, now targeting Abbas - "the plot is renewed"
- Event: PA TV broadcast repeats libel that Israel murdered Yasser Arafat with poison.
- Claim: This implies Israel is planning to kill Mahmoud Abbas, and "the plot is renewed."
- Date: November 11, 2016 (anniversary of Arafat's death).
- Source: Nan Jacques Zilberdik, PMW.
Earlier this week, Palestinian Media Watch reported on similar Palestinian claims planning to "eliminate Abbas politically and physically."
A young girl earlier this year repeated her belief that Israel played a role in Arafat's death, stating that "the Jews killed him":
The young girl's statement shows that the message that "Israel killed Arafat," has been reiterated for years, has been internalized by Palestinian children. Another young child stating that "the Jews" murdered Arafat was broadcast by PA TV:
Girl 1: "I say that he [Arafat] died from poisoning by the Jews. That's what I say."
Girl 2: "He [Arafat] was our former president. He was under siege in Ramallah. When he was under siege we were very upset. The Jews poisoned him and I hate them. We will repay them what they deserve."
Boy 1: "He [Arafat] died from poisoning by the Jews. Well, I don't know what but I know it was by the Jews."
Boy 2: "They destroyed his whole house and he was left in one room and in that room they poisoned him and blamed someone else."
[Official PA TV, once a year 2009-2012]
Despite the fact that the claim that Arafat was poisoned has been rejected by international medical teams, the PA continues to claim Israel did so.
In March 2015, three French judges ruled that "it has not been demonstrated that Arafat was murdered by polonium-210 poisoning." The French prosecutor stated that there was "not sufficient evidence of an intervention by a third party who could have taken his life." [France 24, Sept. 2, 2015] The French prosecutor also explained that polonium and lead found in Arafat's grave were "of an environmental nature." [The Guardian Post, March 17, 2015] Click to read more about the different medical teams' conclusions.
The following is a longer excerpt from the new PA TV video claiming that Israel murdered Arafat and is plotting to kill Abbas:
Song: "O bullets, let us hear the sound of..."