Souha Tawil (rear RTL سهىطويل), known in Occident under the name of Souha Arafat (rear RTL سهىعرفات), is the widow of Yasser Arafat, former president of the Palestinian Autorité.

It was born on July 17th 1963 with Nablus (the West Bank), in a Palestinian family of Christian confession. His/her mother, Raymonda Tawil, is a journalist known in the Occupied territories.

Souha Tawil becomes secretary of Yasser Arafat whereas this one is in exile with Tunis.

Into 1991, it is converted with Islam and, on July 17th, 1990, marries the old Palestinian leader, 34 years its elder. A little girl, Zahwa, are born from this union in 1995.

Relatively unpopular in Palestine, Souha Arafat lives with Paris with his/her daughter when the second Intifada in 2000 bursts. Her husband is confined in his HQ of Ramallah. It re-examines it in October 2004, when the deterioration of the health condition of the ray is known. She travels with him in the helicopter which carries out them in Jordan, where a French official medical plane takes along them to Paris. Yasser Arafat is accommodated with the Percy military hospital of Clamart (France). Right before the death of her husband the November 11th 2004, Souha Arafat shows the Palestinian leaders to want “to bury it alive”, while those reproach him “for having confiscated” the historical leader of the Palestinians, like its heritage.

The received Palestinian delegation the November 9th 2004 with the Elysium by Jacques Chirac, president of the French Republic, includes Ahmed Qorei, Palestinian Prime Minister, Mahmoud Abbas, number two of the PLO, Nabil Shaath, Foreign Minister and Rawhi Fattouh, president of the Palestinian Legislative council (Parliament). The delegation would have received the insurance to be able to reach the bedside of the hospitalized leader, whatever her health condition. Certain commentators noticed that the delegation had been accommodated by Jacques Chirac himself on the perron of the Elysium what, in ordinary time, occurs only for people having the rank of Head of State.

Certain commentators, such as Hani Masri, have an alleged time that Souha Arafat, in agreement with the opponents with the Accords of Oslo, prepared a putsch intended to seize the political power after the death of the old leader. Others report simply that it would be “over the same wavelength” as Farouk Kaddoumi, person in charge of the Foreign affairs within PLO and notorious opponent with the agreements of Oslo. Others finally estimate that the stopping imposed by Souha Arafat around her husband would be intended to obtain guarantees on the maintenance of its “luxurious way of life” after the disappearance of the ray, and recall that French justice opened an investigation into the transfer supposed illegal of dollars on its bank accounts.

After the death of her husband, Souha Arafat lives Tunis with her mother Raymonda Tawil, protected by the Tunisian capacity. Withdrawn from the political life, it however keeps many contacts with the more high level throughout the world. President Ben Ali grants Tunisian nationality to him on September 26th, 2006.

In August 2007, with the general surprise, president Ben Ali expels the family of the territory, mother and girl included/understood, then withdraws Tunisian nationality with Souha. " Tunisian nationality is withdrawn with Mrs Souha Bint Daoud Bin Jabrane Al-Tawil, is been born with Al-Qods (Jerusalem) on July 17th, 1963, which it obtained by naturalization " , one in the Official journal of the Republic of Tunisia (JORT) reads, which gives a report on a decree taken for this purpose under the number 1976, dated August 2nd, 2007. The decree does not mention any reason having justified this decision. It does not quote either the girl's name the 12 years old, which had obtained Tunisian nationality at the same time as his/her mother. Expulsion is all the more astonishing as Souha Arafat was known for her close links with Leïla Ben Ali, woman of the Tunisian president. Contacted by Associated Press, the Tunisian authorities stated not to have not precise details required for the moment. In the same way, the ambassador of the Palestinian Authority in Tunis, Salmane Al-Herfi, refused with any comment. No official explanation was brought until now.

The last public appearance of Souha Arafat dated May 19th, 2007, with the platform of the press conference given to the club of Alyssa with Sidi Bou Saïd (Tunisia). This conference announced the opening of the new private international School of Carthage. The simultaneity of the launching of the new school and the threats against the college Louis Pasteur (old French institution in Tunisia working in the same field) was raised by the French media. The director of the Boubdelli Foundation, which manages the college Louis Pasteur, was explicit in her charges: " Mrs. Souha Arafat, widow of Yasser, and Mrs. Leïla Ben Ali, wife of the President, will open next September an establishment of comparable nature that our college in the northern suburbs of Tunis. It will be the international School of Carthage. It was thus necessary to remove any competition at this new school, particularly that of our college of fame, and to recover pupils and teaching body who, happily, resist until this jour." It would seem that a dissension between Leïla Ben Ali and Souha Arafat in connection with the international School of Carthage is at the origin of the expulsion of the family.

Souha Arafat also made speak about it in connection with transfers of funds towards the private operator of telecommunications “Tunisiana”.

A rumor, probably false, gave a report on its secret marriage with the Tunisian business man Belhassen Trabelsi, brother of Leïla Ben Ali.

It resides today with Valette (Malta) where his/her brother Gabi Tawil occupies the station of Palestinian representative of authority. Questioned by the corresponding one of newspaper Al Hayet, she refused up to that point with any comment.

AFP: Souha Arafat loses the Tunisian citizenship, leaves Tunisia

TUNISIA - Mrs. Souha Tawil, widow of the former president of the Palestinian Authority Yasser Arafat, was déchue of her Tunisian citizenship on order of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and left Tunisia, one learned Tuesday from corroborating sources. " The Tunisian nationality acquired by way of naturalization per Mrs Souha Bent Daoud Ben Jabrane Ettaawil, born on July 17th, 1963 in Jerusalem, is to him retirée" , according to the French text of a decree dated August 2nd, 2007.

This decree was published without other precision with the Official journal of the Republic of Tunisia and no explanation could be obtained Tuesday of official source in Tunis on the reasons of the withdrawal of the nationality granted to Soha Arafat in September 2006. The Palestinian ambassador, Suleimane Al-Hirfi refused to comment on this withdrawal, and an assistant of Mrs. Arafat, joined by AFP on the telephone in Amman (Jordan) affirmed to be " without information" on its new place of residence. According to a Palestinian anonymous source, Souha Arafat would have been exiled with Malta, country where his/her brother occupies the functions of Palestinian representative of authority.

Souha Arafat, 44 years, private of the rights of Tunisian citizen, left Tunisia with his/her daughter Zahwa, 12 years, provided education for at the American school of Tunis. French citizen, Soha lived a long time between Paris and Tunis, before being established in a permanent way in Tunisia, where it intended to open an international school with Carthage (northern suburbs of Tunis).

The creation of this school announced by Mrs. Arafat last spring with the press, created movements in Tunis, where its promoters were shown to cause the closing of the rival establishment Louis Pasteur-Bouebdeli. A petition disputing the closing of this considered establishment, property of a couple free-Tunisian, was published on Internet, with the signature of parents of pupils and Tunisian personalities.

In Tunisia, Souha lived in total discretion, seldom appearing as a public and never not answering the requests of the international press. In August 2006, it had to contradict in the AFP of the rumors published by the Arab press according to which it would have been remariée with Mr. Belhassen Trablesi, business man and son-in-law of the Head of the Tunisian State.

Former assistant of Arafat for the economic affairs and frightening businesswoman, Souha had married the Palestinian leader on July 17th, 1990, during the period of exile of the Liberation organization of Palestine (PLO) in Tunisia (1981-1993). The union of the historical leader of the PLO with his young assistant resulting from the Palestinian Christian middle-class, had been badly perceived by certain Palestinians.

In 2000, Souha had left Gaza to live in Paris. It went to Palestine in November 2004 to the bedside of her husband sick and confined in his HQ besieged by the Israeli army. Little before the death of her husband on November 11th, 2004 at the Percy hospital Clamart, it had criticized the Palestinian leaders, among whom president Mahmoud Abbas.

The French parquet floor opened an preliminary investigation in 2003 on the origin of funds transferred on the Parisian accounts from Souha Arafat.

RFI: The widow of Arafat déchue of her nationality

Souha Arafat, the former First lady of Palestine, and her Zahwa daughter, were déchues Tunisian nationality, which they had obtained in 2006. It is by a decree published in the Official journal of the Republic of Tunisia that this decision was known. No explanation was brought, whether it is Tunisian or Palestinian side. Souha Arafat left Tunisia with his/her Zahwa daughter, 12 years old.

What did it occur between Souha Arafat and the couple Ben Ali? The widow of Yasser Arafat was very close to Zine El Abidine and Leïla Ben Ali, especially since her installation in Tunisia, in 2004, after the death of the Palestinian leader. So much near that Souha Arafat and Leïla Ben Ali had launched out in the businesses together: in mobile telephony with participations in the Tunisiana network, subsidiary of the Egyptian group Orascom, and more recently in the creation of an international College with Carthage which should open its doors with the next return to school.

The ex-First rams of Palestine enjoyed the favors of the hosts of the palate of Carthage, so much so that in September 2006, the Tunisian president granted to him, by decree, Tunisian nationality like with his/her Zahwa daughter. It is also by order in Council that it has just been déchue Tunisian citizenship. Souha Arafat, its daughter and her mother Raymonda Tawil left Tunisia to settle in Malta, where his/her brother, Gabi Tawil, are ambassador of the Palestinian Authority.