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Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/10/29/international/middleeast/29arafat.html?oref=login
Ailing Arafat Flies to Paris
(New York Times) Arafat was flown to Paris for medical treatment on Friday via Amman, Jordan. Israeli officials promised Thursday that he could return to the West Bank after going abroad for treatment. His abruptly declining health raised immediate questions about a successor and the stability of the West Bank and Gaza because he controls the various Palestinian security services. In recent years Arafat has been sharply criticized by a younger generation of Palestinians for his refusal to share power, groom a successor, or promote government institutions. But as long as he lives, it is unlikely that there will be a visible succession struggle. The working assumption among Israeli officials is that Arafat is terminally ill. Senior Palestinian officials said Arafat's mind was not functioning and he was unaware of his surroundings.