# It's official: Yasser Arafat's belongings were contaminated with polonium **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [October 16, 2013, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373 "2013-10-16T03:40:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/141 "2013-11-09T01:50:02Z")
If he was poisoned I’d think the Israelis would be the last ones who’d have killed him. He was an incompetent leader whom they regularly spanked whenever he acted up. Why replace the guy you’re beating the crap out of with someone who might be competent. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/142 "2013-11-09T01:53:10Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > Because Arafat had some highly unusual fetishes. You don’t want to know any more. Are you referring to the rumors of him and his bodyguard? The stories are more than a little humorous but I’m not sure his reliable they are. ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/143 "2013-11-09T03:33:24Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > If he was poisoned I’d think the Israelis would be the last ones who’d have killed him. > > He was an incompetent leader whom they regularly spanked whenever he acted up. > > Why replace the guy you’re beating the crap out of with someone who might be competent. Don’t you go spoiling everything with common sense, now. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/144 "2013-11-09T03:38:35Z")
I think that he died of AIDS, and the Palestinians doped his stuff with polonium to incriminate the Israelis. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![KarlGauss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/karlgauss/32/3713_2.png) [@KarlGauss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGauss)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 4:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/145 "2013-11-09T04:10:15Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I think that he died of AIDS, and the Palestinians doped his stuff with polonium to incriminate the Israelis. > 🙂 It’s no so far fetched. If you were interested in advancing the cause of the Palestinians would you rather that his legacy was “he died of cirrhosis” or “the Israeli-Zionists murdered him!”? On a different note, I treat a _lot_ of old guys with cirrhosis. I’m thinking maybe I should start checking their undies for traces of Polonium. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/146 "2013-11-09T04:14:00Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I think that he died of AIDS, and the Palestinians doped his stuff with polonium to incriminate the Israelis. > 🙂 The idea that he died of AIDS has been promulgated for awhile. I don’t think think the evidence supporting it can be surmised as anything beyond idle speculation. ---
**Author:** ![Honesty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f04885/32.png) [@Honesty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Honesty)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/147 "2013-11-09T17:01:16Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Just how much respect do you expect Yasser Arafat to get on this forum, anyway? I don’t see how respecting Yasser Arafat is coupled to gloating about his death. Unless Mr. Arafat is the modern version of Hitler, I just don’t see the foam-at-the-mouth disrespect they have for Mr. Arafat. [QUOTE=Malthus] “Moderately support the proposition” is, as I’ve pointed out, not enough to convict someone of murder (never mind that there is, in fact, no suspect named). There are many levels of assumption between this report and the conclusion “Israel had him wacked”. [/QUOTE] When a scientist says “moderately support” it’s not what you think. - Honesty ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/148 "2013-11-09T17:27:59Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > The only people known to use Polonium for assassination are the Russians. The Russians have many allies in the ME, including the Syrians. Coincidentally or not, the Russian group investigating found no evidence of Polonium, and were allegedly told by the Russian government to keep their report “vague”. > > [http://www.edmontonjournal.com/technology/Palestinian+investigator+says+Israel+only+suspect+Yasser/9142139/story.html](http://www.edmontonjournal.com/technology/Palestinian+investigator+says+Israel+only+suspect+Yasser/9142139/story.html) > > So, if we are speculating, why not add the Russians as a possible source, perhaps helping out one of their allies in the ME (perhaps the Syrians) with a grudge against Arafat? > > Facts in favour of this speculation: > > 1. Russia is known to use polonium for assassinations. As far as I know, they are the only ones with this MO. Israel ususally uses bombs or bullets. > > 2. The Russian government appears, according to Al Jazeera, to be attempting to interfere in the investigation - to downplay the evidence of polonium. > > 3. Russia is no friend to Israel and would be happy to see Israel tagged with assasination. They have no motive to cover up evidence to help out Israel. > > 4. Russia has plenty of allies in the ME who had grudges against Arafat, such as the Syrian dictatorship. > > 5. Russia is known to provide assistance to these allies. > > The argument against this speculation is the same as against the Israeli hypothesis: Arafat was an isolated old dude who posed no particular threat any more - why assassinate him now? Why would Russia wish to risk the negative publicity if caught? (The counter-argument to that is that Russia could reasonably rely on Israel taking the blame unless the evidence against the Russians was overwhelming). > > That is, of course, speculation, assuming that he did in fact die from assassination by polonium. You are making the mistake of looking at the politics of 2004 in light of todays. In 2004 Russia was still emerging from the 1990’s. It had not yet assumed the assertive stance that it displays these days, Israel was suffering fairly regular attacks and the Syrians were not only at peace, but had good relations with the west. So your analysis is off. If somebody did kill him, the Israelis have to be the most plausible suspects. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/149 "2013-11-09T18:58:34Z")
In other breaking news (of the “no parrots died”) variety - it’s been announced that Pablo Neruda [did _not_ die of poisoning](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-24871561), at least according to the Chilean forensic service and foreign experts who tested the poet’s remains. \*Mr Bustos confirmed that Neruda’s remains seemed to support the official line that he had died of cancer. However, Friday’s highly-anticipated results did not satisfy everyone. “The Neruda case doesn’t close today,” said Chilean Communist Party lawyer Eduardo Contreras. “Today we are going to request more samples. They referred to chemical agents but there are no studies about biological agents. A very important chapter has closed and was done very seriously but this is not over.” Neruda’s driver and personal assistant, Manuel Araya, had maintained that the poet was poisoned. Mr Araya said Neruda had called him from hospital, and told him he was feeling sick after having been given an injection in the stomach. Chile began investigating Mr Araya’s allegations in 2011. The suspicions were backed by the Chilean Communist Party, which said Neruda did not exhibit any of the symptoms associated with the advanced prostate cancer he was said to have died of. They said that the military government feared Neruda would go into exile in Mexico and campaign against the Pinochet regime."\* Neruda’s nephew wants testing done for thallium and sarin gas. But curiously, no one seems to be demanding polonium testing. Could it be that the [del]Is[/del] someone poisoned Neruda with polonium to please Chilean fascist allies? Moreover - has anyone tested Yasser Arafat for thallium and sarin gas exposure? Tellingly, a classic sign of acute thallium poisoning is nausea and vomiting - exactly what Arafat had! There is more than meets the eye here. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2013, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/150 "2013-11-09T21:25:06Z")
> [@Honesty](#): > > I don’t see how respecting Yasser Arafat is coupled to gloating about his death. Unless Mr. Arafat is the modern version of Hitler, I just don’t see the foam-at-the-mouth disrespect they have for Mr. Arafat. > > When a scientist says “moderately support” it’s not what you think. > > - Honesty Hitler? No. But people here have a hard time respecting people like Margaret Thatcher or George W. Bush, and they’re not Hitler, either. Obviously, my own opinion of him is probably lower than the most, here, but I’d say the majority of posters think of him as not all that much more than just another dead terrorist. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2013, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/151 "2013-11-10T00:14:29Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > You are making the mistake of looking at the politics of 2004 in light of todays. In 2004 Russia was still emerging from the 1990’s. It had not yet assumed the assertive stance that it displays these days … Funny, that’s not how I remember the time. I remember Arafat as being a less bellicose element on the Palastinian side (to be sure still someone who few Isralis would mourn) and Russia being quite invested in the region, as [this Congressional testimony of the time](http://archive.frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=9228) discussed. > [@](#): > > … the Soviet Union had a long history of support, economic, financial and military, for Syria and for Syrian-aligned terrorist groups. Russia has continued the military relationship since the collapse of the Soviet Union at the end of 1991 … In addition, there is a hidden dimension to the Russian-Syrian relationship that receives insufficient attention—intelligence cooperation. Syrian intelligence officers have often been trained in Russia and the two countries appear to maintain a close intelligence relationship. Syria had a long time animosity with Arafat. While the Israelis would shed no tears that the old man died, they saw him as no current threat in any way. He was a stable predictable entity, Israel had every reason to prefer that to an unknown change in leadership. OTOH the Syrians could have thought that a leadership transition would give a chance for their proxies, and their role in the region, to become more ascendent. The Syrians had the motive. IF Arafat was bumped off with polonium he was killed with waepon of choice of the Russians who trained and had close relations with Syria’s intelligence operatives. The Russians initially claimed that no, no polonium was in any tissue samples, while its presence is moderately probable to other researchers at a later date, when it should be harder to find. I don’t know if he was killed off or died of his established poor health. I did not celebrate his death but I understand why some would. His death at that moment served no obvious Israeli interest of the time that was not better served by letting nature take its course and was not of the typical Israeli MO. The Syrians, backed by Russia, did have timely motives, the MO (if it was murder by polonium) is Russian, and the Russians in that scenario seemed to be involved in a cover-up. But if they did, I don’t care. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2013, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/152 "2013-11-10T03:26:18Z")
> [@Lute Skywatcher](#): > > [[Swiss] Scientists find at least 18 times the normal levels of radioactive element in late Palestinian leader’s remains.](http://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/killing-arafat/swiss-study-polonium-found-arafats-bones-201311522578803512.html) I’m not impressed, since the normal level of polonium in a human body, pretty much none, doesn’t go up much in absolute terms if you have eighteen times pretty much none. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2013, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/153 "2013-11-10T04:03:40Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > I’m not impressed, since the normal level of polonium in a human body, pretty much none, doesn’t go up much in absolute terms if you have eighteen times pretty much none. Run that by again. Are you saying that it is so small an amount as to not be accurately measured, or not enough to kill him? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/154 "2013-11-11T01:22:04Z")
It doesn’t take much polonium to kill you, but as the human body typically contains virtually no plutonium, 18 times 0 still gives you pretty much no plutonium, and not enough to kill you. I blame the excitement on the spectacularly sensitive measuring instruments we have these days. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/155 "2013-11-11T03:25:32Z")
The stuff decays pretty quickly, 138 days. Finding anything significant above baseline this many years later is … interesting. From I can read it is actually quite surprising that there would be any amount above background at this point if it was used. Anyone with any understanding of why his medical files have not been released by the French in the context of this investigation. His hair not falling out and not having severe diarrhea (both the typical signs of polonium poisoning) is one thing … but if he had a normal white count then he could not have been murdered by pololium. And a very low white count would raise the suspicion significantly higher. There is no doubt that he would have had multiple blood counts while there. Also anyone with any guesses why neither the Russian or the French investigative teams have reported finding the polonium in the samples they analyzed? ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/156 "2013-11-11T03:53:45Z")
I assume the ones who found it are looking for what it decays to. Polonium leaves a surprisingly clear trail of breadcrumbs, considering its short half life. It still forces us to confront the “Why bother killing a sickly man of 75?” question, but if one accepts the cliche that people of the Mid East (all sides) are the Honey Badgers of the planet… 😉 http:/ /www.youtube.com/watch?v=4r7wHMg5Yjg (link broken. NSFW) ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/157 "2013-11-11T04:24:41Z")
It’s odd that no autopsy was performed at the time of death, seeing that there allegedly had been multiple attempts on his life by various parties - and if the circumstances around his death truly had been suspicious, you’d think the family would have been eager for an autopsy to be done. The lack of one has probably helped give rise to speculations and rumors such as Arafat’s having HIV/AIDS, a cirrhotic liver etc. which might have prompted embarassing revelations in the autopsy report. A more likely explanation is that there was perception at the time of an unambiguous and non-controversial cause of death, and no reason to have an autopsy done (in my experience families generally do not want one unless there are unanswered medical questions or leanings toward a malpractice suit). ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/158 "2013-11-11T05:05:06Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > I assume the ones who found it are looking for what it decays to. Polonium leaves a surprisingly clear trail of breadcrumbs, considering its short half life. … You might want to read some of the many articles about this. No it does not. It leaves a very faint trail which is not very clear at all. Interestingly looking for an article to link you to I found [this](http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2013/11/the-maybe-murder-of-yasser-arafat/). > [@](#): > > Arafat didn’t demonstrate the classic symptoms of acute radiation syndrome. He suffered no hair loss, for instance, and no signs of the usual bone marrow damage which routinely leads to a devastating drop in blood cells. In fact, counter to the typical pattern, his white blood cell counts were elevated, suggesting infection rather than radiation poisoning. His white blood cell count was elevated? (He did have diarrhea though.) Okay, let’s look at [the actual Swiss report](http://www.aljazeera.com/investigations/killing-arafat/Swiss-forensic-report-Arafat-death-201311671255163780.html). He had bone marrow biopsies done and they were normal. Normal. Now I am convinced. This seems likely a spurious finding. I can’t say it’s impossible to be true but to claim that he had enough polonium in his bones to still show up NOW, enough to have killed him, and yet not enough to have had the marrow suppression and consequent low white cell count strains belief. Given that neither of the other labs with samples have reported replicated findings it seems unlikely to be true. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/159 "2013-11-11T15:48:13Z")
> [@AK84](#): > > You are making the mistake of looking at the politics of 2004 in light of todays. In 2004 Russia was still emerging from the 1990’s. It had not yet assumed the assertive stance that it displays these days, Israel was suffering fairly regular attacks and the Syrians were not only at peace, but had good relations with the west. > So your analysis is off. If somebody did kill him, the Israelis have to be the most plausible suspects. Russia wacked a guy living in the West, using polonium no less, two years after Arafat died. I’d say that was pretty “assertive”. > **[Poisoning of Alexander Litvinenko](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poisoning_of_Alexander_Litvinenko)** > > Alexander Litvinenko was an officer of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and its predecessor, the KGB, until he left the service and fled the country in late 2000. > In 1998, Litvinenko and several other Russian intelligence officers said they had been ordered to kill Boris Berezovsky, a Russian businessman. After that, the Russian government began to persecute Litvinenko. He fled to the UK, where he criticised the Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Russian government. In exile, ... Unless you are arguing that the Russia of 2006 was somehow radically different from the Russia of 2004. What does Syria’s relations with the West have to do with anything? Having Arafat killed in a way that, evidently, escaped detection doesn’t risk Syria’s relations with the West much. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2013, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373/160 "2013-11-11T15:55:21Z")
More about Russian poisioning in that era. Alleged to have been poisioned by Russia in 2004: > **[Viktor Yushchenko](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Yushchenko)** > > Viktor Andriyovych Yushchenko (Ukrainian: Віктор Андрійович Ющенко, IPA: \[ˈwiktor ɐnˈd⁽ʲ⁾r⁽ʲ⁾ijowɪtʃ ˈjuʃtʃenko\] (listen); born 23 February 1954) is a Ukrainian politician who was the third president of Ukraine from 23 January 2005 to 25 February 2010. He aimed to orient Ukraine towards the West, towards the European Union and NATO. > Before his election as president, Yushchenko had already had a career in Ukrainian politics. In 1993, he became governor of the National Bank of Ukraine. From 1999... > **[Roman Tsepov](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Tsepov)** > > Roman Igorevich Tsepov (Russian: Роман Игоревич Цепов; 22 July 1962 – 24 September 2004) was a Russian businessman and confidant to Vladimir Putin during Putin's work at the Saint Petersburg City Administration. Tsepov was suspected of criminal and corruption activity. > Born Belinson, Tsepov changed his surname upon marriage to Tsepov.\[citation needed\] Upon graduation from the Supreme Political school of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the USSR, Tsepov served in the Internal Troops as a pol... In 2003: > **[Yuri Shchekochikhin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Shchekochikhin)** > > Yuri Petrovich Shchekochikhin (Russian: Ю́рий Петро́вич Щекочи́хин, IPA: \[ˈjʉrʲɪj pʲɪˈtrovʲɪtɕ ɕːɪkɐˈtɕixʲɪn\]; 9 June 1950 – 3 July 2003) was a Soviet and later Russian investigative journalist, writer, and liberal lawmaker in the Russian parliament. Shchekochikhin wrote and campaigned against the influence of organized crime and corruption. His last non-fiction book, Slaves of the KGB, was about people who worked as KGB informers. > As a journalist for the newspaper Novaya Gazeta (NG), Shchekochi... Looks like Russia was no stranger to poisioning people around the time of Arafat’s death - assuming of course these allegations are true. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/its-official-yasser-arafats-belongings-were-contaminated-with-polonium/671373.md?page=9)