Abbas Mourns Arafat’s Sister

Khadija Arafat. Asharq Al-Awsat Arabic
Khadija Arafat. Asharq Al-Awsat Arabic
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Abbas Mourns Arafat’s Sister

Khadija Arafat. Asharq Al-Awsat Arabic
Khadija Arafat. Asharq Al-Awsat Arabic

Khadija Arafat, sister of the late Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, died early Saturday morning at a hospital in Cairo where she had been receiving treatment, at the age of 86, according to the Palestinian WAFA news agency.

President Mahmoud Abbas reportedly mourned her passing and acknowledged her role in her brother’s revolutionary and nationalistic aspirations realized through the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO). He offered condolences to her relatives, family and loved ones.

Fatah mourned with deep sorrow the death of Khadija, calling her “the Revolutionary Adult”.

Also, the Palestinian Embassy in Cairo announced that Arafat died while receiving treatment in a Cairo hospital, but no further information was given regarding her death.

Khadija was the only remaining sister of Arafat. She headed charity organizations offering services to Palestinians in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, and Gaza Strip.

Arafat died at the age of 75 in 2004 in a military hospital in Paris, after a long Israeli siege of his headquarters. Palestinians accuse Israelis of poisoning him, yet years after investigation no significant information was revealed.

The commission of inquiry, headed by Fatah member Tawfik Tirawi, summoned security men close to Arafat and questioned them. The commission also took samples from his body to confirm or deny the hypothesis of him being poisoned.

The commission didn’t issue any statement or outcomes, although Abbas said last year that he knew who killed Arafat but would wait for the results of the investigation. As he marked the 12th anniversary of the Arafat’s death, he said, “You ask me who killed him, I know — but my testimony alone is not enough. A commission of inquiry is digging into that, but you’ll find out at the earliest opportunity and be amazed when you know who did it.”



Rescuers Say Israeli Strike Killed at Least 12 People in South Gaza 

Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a tent sheltering displaced people at the Gaza seaport, in Gaza City, June 4, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a tent sheltering displaced people at the Gaza seaport, in Gaza City, June 4, 2025. (Reuters)
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Rescuers Say Israeli Strike Killed at Least 12 People in South Gaza 

Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a tent sheltering displaced people at the Gaza seaport, in Gaza City, June 4, 2025. (Reuters)
Palestinians inspect the damage at the site of an Israeli airstrike on a tent sheltering displaced people at the Gaza seaport, in Gaza City, June 4, 2025. (Reuters)

The civil defense agency in Gaza said an Israeli strike on a tent housing displaced Palestinians near the southern city of Khan Younis on Wednesday killed at least 12 people.  

"At least 12 people were killed, including several children and women, in a strike by an Israeli drone this morning on a tent for displaced persons" near Khan Younis, the agency's spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP, adding that four more people had been killed in other strikes.  

The Israeli army did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment.  

Since a truce collapsed in March, Israel has intensified its operations to destroy Hamas, the Palestinian group whose October 7, 2023 attack triggered the war in Gaza. 

Hamas's unprecedented attack resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official figures. 

The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 4,240 people have been killed in the territory since Israel resumed its offensive on March 18, taking the war's overall toll to 54,510, mostly civilians.