Homage to Arafat

He left no stone unturned for an independent Palestine state. Finally, he was a genuine friend of Bangladesh.

Even before Yasser Arafat, President of the occupied Palestine and the leader of the Palestinian people, breathed his last, the pre-planned vilification campaign by the Israelis and their western allies had commenced.

The vilification will now be taken to its height in order to weaken the hands of the new leaders of Palestine so that they can be presented with a fait accompli road map to accept.

Mr Mumtaz Ahmed On e-mail

Abu Ammar is no more. This single sentence has devastated the hearts of millions of Palestinians and a billion Muslims all over the world. It was evident but still the pain is unbearable, the loss is inconceivable. The man whose life has been the history of Palestine...who is more important than their national anthem or the flag has finally fallen to the inevitable tragedy of life.

Yasser Arafat is not just a name, it's a legacy-- the undisputed leader of Palestinians who were destitute on their soil for more than half a century. The man taught the landless millions to dream for a motherland ...sing an anthem ...imagine in the colours of red, white, black and blue. The man started from nothing and devoted his entire life in this uneven struggle against Israel. Whatever shape the dream for Palestine has today, its due to him.

When the entire Muslim world is gripped by pain and grief....the comments made by Ariel Sharon and his dearest mates George W Bush were simply wanton and mindless. It appears that these two persons have no respect for the emotion of millions or billions.

To the Israeli premier ...Arafat is a terrorist. Does he have any idea what a terrorist means? Did he see that terrorist receiving funerals in three different continents. Did he see how his police and security forces had to sweat to contain thousands of grief stricken Palestinians in the West Bank?

Will there be a single Israeli who will be chanting to exchange his own soul for that of Ariel Sharon? Is there a single American who will tell George Bush that you are more important than our flag or national anthem? If Bush and Sharon spend the rest of their lives as president or premier, even then they will be nowhere near the grace of Arafat. My heart goes out to Arafat's family, friends, relatives and millions of inconsolable Palestinians. They have lost their father.. the architect of their freedom...the lyricist of their saga of life.

If Arafat needs to come once more to turn his dream into reality...then the Almighty Allah , please take my life in exchange of Arafat's!

Md Bashar Farhad Mirpur, Dhaka

I'm very shocked to hear of the death of Palestinian leader Mr. Yasser Arafat.

This great man fought for the dream of the Palestinian people. "Intifada" is the dream of Palestinians! Freedom, justice and own land. That's what the Palestinians ever wanted! My heart bleeds for this group of people who have been suffering since 1948 because of the bestiality of Israeli authorities.

Cantara Wali Ruhi, JU

The last and only true protector of Palestine is now dead and surely this has brought relief to Israeli authorities as well as the Bush government. Yasser Arafat struggled all his life for the just rights of the Palestinians. An independent Palestine was his dream. And on the deathbed his last wish was to see his tomb in Jerusalem.

But the Israelis have refused to honour his last wishes. The international community should condemn the Israeli move.

Muftah Wali Department of English, Jahangirnagar University