Arafat ‘better’ condemns civilian deaths in Tel Aviv

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat condemned a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv on Monday and called on both Palestinians and Israelis to avoid killing civilians, a senior aide said. The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a militant group in Arafat’s Palestine Liberation Organisation, said it carried out the attack. In Ramallah, Palestinian PM Ahmed Qurie called for an end to suicide bombings.

Leila Shahid, permanent Palestinian envoy to Paris, said Arafat ‘‘is improving by the hour but is very tired and exhausted’’. French medical sources said nothing could be ruled out until doctors released the results of the tests, expected mid-week. —Reuters