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RAMALLAH, West Bank -- Yasser Arafat's body was being flown back to the Mideast for funeral services after French and Palestinian officials honored him Thursday with a ceremony befitting a head of state.
Arafat's widow, Suha, stifled sobs as the Palestinian flag-draped coffin of her 75-year-old husband was carried off a military helicopter to an official French aircraft. It then left for Cairo, Egypt, where funeral services will be held Friday.
Arafat, revered as the champion of Palestinian statehood and reviled as a terrorist, died Thursday morning, spreading spasms of grief among Palestinians and rekindling calls for new peace talks with Israel.
Arafat's death marked a turning point in modern Middle East history, leaving the Palestinians without a strong leader for the first time in four decades and arousing fears of a chaotic power struggle that could lead to fighting in the streets.
In a hurried effort to project continuity, the PLO elected former Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas as its new chief, virtually ensuring he will succeed Arafat as leader of the Palestinians, at least for an interim period.
The Palestinian legislature also swore in Parliament Speaker Rauhi Fattouh as caretaker president of the Palestinian Authority until elections can be held in 60 days, according to Palestinian law.
Arafat died at 3:30 a.m. Paris time (9:30 p.m. EST Wednesday) at a French military hospital. Neither his doctors nor Palestinian leaders said what killed him.
"He closed his eyes and his big heart stopped. He left for God but he is still among this great people," said senior Arafat aide Tayeb Abdel Rahim, who broke into tears announcing his death.
In the West Bank and Gaza Strip, thousands ran into the streets, clutching his photograph, crying and wondering how they would survive without the man who embodied their struggle for statehood.
"He is our father," Namia Abu-Safia, 48, said sobbing in the Jebaliya refugee camp in the Gaza Strip. "He is Palestine."
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