News reports today have indicated the former Palestinian president Yasser Arafat's medical records do not give conclusive results regarding what caused his death.
The New York Timesand Haaretznewspapers reported the news today, prompting Palestinian officials to call for the publication of the records.
The reports were the first based on the actual medical records since Mr Arafat died in a Paris hospital on November 11th after falling ill in his West Bank compound a month earlier. Mr Arafat's widow, Suha Arafat, and other relatives have kept the records secret since his death.
A stroke was the final blow that killed the Palestinian leader, but it is not clear what disease or illness led to a deterioration in his health, the New York Timesconcluded in its report.
The records reportedly show it was highly unlikely that he died of Aids or poisoning, the newspaper said. But Palestinian doctors continue to insist that he was poisoned, the Timesreported.
Mr Arafat's personal doctor, Ashraf al-Kurdi, who did not treat Mr Arafat in his final weeks, said that he knows French doctors found the Aids virus in Mr Arafat's blood, Haaretzreported.
The virus was given to Mr Arafat by Israel to disguise poisoning, the paper quoted him as saying.
But Haaretznotes the medical report states that it is impossible to pinpoint a cause that would explain the combination of symptoms that led to the death.