France has opened an inquiry into the possibility that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat was murdered, according to Agence France-Presse. Medical records say that a stroke was the cause of Arafat’s 2004 death, but speculation has swirled ever since, with his family contending that he may have been poisoned using the radioactive element polonium-210. An investigation by the news agency Al-Jazeera into the poisoning claims led to findings by scientists in Switzerland that “significant” traces of polonium were found on Arafat’s belongings. Based on the Al-Jazeera report, Arafat’s family filed a case with officials in France to demand further investigation.
