Roundup: Palestinians commemorate Arafat's death anniversary

Palestinians commemorated on Wednesday the 11th anniversary of the death of their leader Yasser Arafat, vowing to walk in his footsteps.

Palestinian officials headed by Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah laid wreaths on Arafat's mausoleum at the presidential headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Hamdallah said Palestinians want to keep Arafat's memory and heritage alive by resuming efforts to achieve his dreams of independence, freedom and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital.

Fatah movement, the party Arafat co-founded and led for years, organized demonstrations across the West Bank to commemorate the memory, which turned into violent clashes between Palestinians and the Israeli army.

The most intense clash broke out at a checkpoint in al-Bireh city that leads to the Bet El settlement near Ramallah. Similar clashes were reported at Atara checkpoint near Ramallah and in Bethlehem, south of the West Bank and Tulkarm in the north.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said 62 Palestinians were injured across the West Bank by the Israeli live ammunition and rubber-coated bullets. Some 56 people were shot by live bullets, one critically.

Fatah spokesperson Hussain Hamayel told Xinhua that the Israeli army "brutally suppressed the demonstration by firing heavily towards the participants."

An exhibition was organized in Nablus, north of the West Bank, to tell the different phases of Arafat's life. Nablus Mayor Akram Al-Rjoub said that the late president will remain alive in the hearts of those who loved him.

In Gaza, dozens of Palestinians took to the streets to mark the memory in response to a call by the national and Islamic forces.

Demonstrators hoisted Palestinian flags as well as flags of Palestinian and Islamic parties. They handed UN officials in Gaza a note to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon asking an international investigation committee to expose Arafat's "killers."

Abu Shahla, a member of Fatah Revolutionary Council Faisal, told Xinhua that Arafat led the contemporary Palestinian revolution and preserved the national unity.

He said that an international investigation should be launched to probe Arafat's "assassination and the international community shouldn't remain silent."

The Islamic movement of Hamas spokesperson, Sami Abu Zuhri, expressed appreciation and pride of Arafat despite political differences with him. "He preserved national unity and resistance."

He said that the death anniversary should push for the implementation of the Palestinian unity, "particularly in the current time where Palestinians are suffering from the crimes of the Israeli occupation."

Abu Zuhri stressed the need to reveal who killed Arafat and keep the file open until the truth is out.

The Press House foundation in Gaza organized a photo exhibition about Arafat's siege with the presence of representatives of national and Islamic forces, independent figures and university students.

Islamic Jihad leader Khaled Al-Batsh said in a statement during the exhibition that Arafat has struggled for the liberation of Palestine.

On Tuesday, Hamas handed over the house of Arafat in Gaza, eight years after controlling the house and the Gaza Strip following fierce battles with forces loyal to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA).

Deputy chief of Hamas political bureau Ismail Hanyeh said in a statement that handing the house stressed that the "assassination file is a national one and is still open."

Arafat was the former president of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) since 1969 and the first president of the PNA since its establishment in 1994, following the interim Oslo Accords with Israel.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in a televised statement that the national committee to investigate Arafat's death has achieved progress.

In a recorded statement for the anniversary, Abbas stressed that the committee would continue working to reveal the truth.

Arafat died on Nov. 11, 2004 of a mysterious illness that claimed the life of the 75-year-old. Palestinians have accused Israel of assassinating their leader by poison. Endit