No big celebration plan for Arafat's 75th birthday
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat turned 75 today, but there were no birthday parties or parades.
Arafat spent the day as usual – hunkered down behind sandbags in the shell-pocked compound where he lives and works in the West Bank city of Ramallah.
Aides said a few Palestinian officials brought Arafat flowers, but no festivities were planned.
Israel has confined Arafat to his Ramallah headquarters for more than two years, and the Israeli government refuses to deal with him, saying he has done nothing to halt Palestinian attacks and is an obstacle to Mideast peace.
Palestinians consider Arafat their main symbol of struggle and independence, though many disagree with his autocratic style of rule.
Although Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has declared Arafat “irrelevant”, Israeli media hang on his every word.
