Fathi Arafat, a brother of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, is receiving treatment at a Cairo hospital for cancer in an advanced stage, hospital officials said Tuesday.
Fathi Arafat, 71, has cancer and is in intensive care, a doctor at the Palestine Hospital in suburban Cairo said, requesting anonymity. Arafat, a physician and founder of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society, is the hospital's director.
Another hospital official, also requesting anonymity, said the cancer had spread throughout his body.
Fathi Arafat has been suffering from stomach cancer for about four years and has had two operations in the past three years, an aide in Gaza said on condition of anonymity. His condition is now critical, he said, cited by AP.
Arafat, a physician, quit his position as chairman of the Palestinian Red Crescent three years ago, but has served as honorable chairman. He is also a senior member of Fatah, the PLO's political movement. Arafat is married without children.
Meanwhile, Yasser Arafat's health is improving, one of his aides said Tuesday, repeating that tests have ruled out leukemia as the cause of the Palestinian president's health problems.
Leila Shahid, the Palestinian envoy to France, said, "President Arafat's condition has improved sufficiently for him to undergo tests that would not have been performed upon admission" to the French military hospital where he was rushed for treatment last week.
She spoke of a possible problem with his "digestive function."
"For the past 48 hours, he has been able to converse with his doctors and close relatives, colleagues and heads of state," she said. (Albawaba.com)
