Arafat hopes to be buried in Jerusalem: grand mufti
7/11/2004 11:42
Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and Palestinian territories Sheikh Ekrema Sabri
said the ailing leader Yasser Arafat had voiced his hope to be buried near
Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, local press reported Saturday.
Sabri said Friday
that Arafat made the request during a meeting four months ago, marking the first
official comment on his burial wishes.
"It was enough to tell the will before
the families or the closest friends," Sabri added without specifying whether
Arafat had a written will.
Al-Aqsa Mosque is built on the ruins of the
biblical Jewish temples, revered by Jews as the holiest site in Judaism and
meanwhile considered the third-holiest shrine in the Muslim world.
Israel and
the Palestinians remain in hot disputes over control and sovereignty of the
site.
As for Arafat's final resting place, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel
Sharon has repeatedly ruled it out in Jerusalem or its environs.
On Friday,
Israeli Minister of Justice Yosef Lapid told Israel TV's Channel Two: "Now we
are talking about Gaza. We have no problems with Gaza, of course,"
Arafat
clan has a family burial plot in Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip where his father
and sister were buried.
Sabri, however, condemned the Israeli statements,
asserting that it was the Palestinians' desire that Arafat be buried in
Jerusalem near Al-Aqsa Mosque in case of his death.
Xinhua
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