Thursday, November 12, 2009 RAMALLAH: Tens of thousands of Palestinians gathered Wednesday to honour their iconic leader Yasser Arafat, with president Mahmud Abbas due to address the rally amid a brewing political crisis.The fifth anniversary of Arafat's death finds Palestinians more divided than ever and his successor Abbas pondering resignation because of stalled US-led peace efforts that have failed to bring about an independent Palestinian state.A crowd waving Palestinian flags and banners of Abbas's Fatah party crammed the government compound that contains Arafat's tomb to honour the man who catapulted the Palestinians' struggle onto the world stage and led them through nearly four decades of armed struggle and sputtering peace talks.A senior Palestinian security official estimated that more than 100,000 people had gathered in and around the Muqataa presidential compound, the headquarters of the Palestinian Authority and the site of Arafat's mausoleum.Abbas wa...
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