Ailing Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat will be airlifted to Paris for treatment early Friday, his senior advisor Nabil Abu Rudeina told reporters outside Arafat's Ramallah compound late Thursday.
According to one of Arafat's medical consultants, the departure was scheduled at 6:30 a.m. (0430 GMT).
Two Jordanian helicopters will airlift Arafat from the West Bank city to the Jordanian capital Amman, where he will take a French plane to Paris for treatment, Jordan's official Petra News Agency reported.
A Xinhua correspondent witnessed that at least two bulldozers were ready to enter Muqata, Arafat's headquarters, to clear enough space for a makeshift tarmac.
Abu Rudeina said the leader was now in stable conditions but doctors had advised Arafat to receive follow-up checks abroad as they deemed it necessary.
Rudeina noted that there would be no acting leader during Arafat's overseas treatment, since the prime minister, the Palestinian Legislative Council and the Palestinian Liberation Organization were all there to address the daily work.
Arafat had every trust in their leadership, the advisor added.
He also expressed gratitude to French President Jacques Chirac and Jordanian King Abdullah II for their efforts.
The decision to transfer Arafat to Paris for treatment of a potentially fatal blood disorder came following Arafat's own consent.
Suha Arafat flew to Ramallah to the bedside of her sick husband earlier in the day. It was the first time for Suha to return to the West Bank since Arafat was put under virtual house arrest by Israel since December 2001.
Israel has guaranteed that it will not bar Arafat from returning to the West Bank if he needs to go abroad for medical treatment.
"For us, it is a purely medical and humanitarian issue," Israeli government spokesman Raanan Gissin said.
Arafat, 75, has been sick over the past two weeks, suffering from what Palestinian officials said a stomach flu.
He underwent a minor diagnostic procedure on Monday after complaining of stomach pains.
Israeli officials speculated that he might have stomach cancer, but two of Arafat's doctors said Wednesday that a blood test and a biopsy of tissue taken from his digestive tract found no serious ailment.
On Wednesday night, the Israeli media quoted sources as saying that Arafat was very very sick. Some reports said that Arafat collapsed earlier and had lost consciousness for several hours.
As the news circulated, hundreds of Palestinians and journalists gathered outside Muqata, waiting for information about Arafat's health.
Questions about Arafat's health have raised Palestinian fears of a bloody power struggle after his death since he has never picked a successor.
To calm the inflammable atmosphere, Rudeina appeared in front of the headquarters, telling reporters that the leader's condition was stable and Arafat "needs more rest because of his fatigue" and better medical care.
In another development, thousands of people gathered in towns and cities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip Thursday to show solidarity with Arafat who is adored as the hero of the Palestinian national struggle.