According to the Israeli newspaper Harretz Yasser Arafat was HIV positive. His spokespeople deny this, but the newspaper printed conclusive proof. How he obtained the virus is up for speculation. Rumors that he was bisexual have circulated for years. He was alleged to crossdress as well. But the HIV status of the late Palestinian leader is pretty conclusive according to the story.

I believe it. When he died, alot of news reports mentioned that "the details" surrounding his passing were not being released. I would never have thought twice about it if they hadn't of kept saying that, but it because such a regular comment that it occured to me he might be HIV-positive. That it's been leaked and printed (assuming it is, in fact, true) doesn't surprise me ... and, if it's not true somehow, it's easy to see how the rumor mill got started.

Did you read the story yourself (link please) or were you told of the story by someone else? I can't find the story at the Haaretz site.

A report earlier this week on NPR was prompted by the release, by the French hospital at which he died, of documents related to his death. These led NYT reporter Steve Erlanger to conclude that he definitely did not die of AIDS but doesn't rule out the possibility that he was HIV+.

Link to a transcript of Erlanger's NPR interview.

[ September 21, 2005, 01:56 PM: Message edited by: Torgauer ]

I believe that the washington blade website may have posted the entire story. You might check it out.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/622562.html

here's a link. although when I did a search I did find conflicting reports.

What the Haaretz report actually says is that no one has any real idea of how Arafat died. The HIV claim is based on a personal physician who was pushed aside in the last days of Arafat's life and an Israeli AIDS expert diagnosing AIDS from symptoms, not tests. The real summary of the report is that Arafat died of a brain hemorrage of which no one can find a conclusive cause. I think the AIDS and poison hypotheses are really just more fuel for the conspiracy nuts on both sides. The food poisoning/infection theory seems to have a bit more medical basis.