11 November 2004	Thursday	27 Ramazan 1425

CAIRO, Nov 10: The funeral of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat could take place in Cairo on Friday if he dies by then, the veteran leader's chief aide, Nabil Abu Rudeina, said on Wednesday.

"If the president were to die in the next few hours, as his doctors say he might, the official funeral will be held in Cairo on Friday, in the presence of Arab and Muslim kings, princes and heads of state who wish to take part," he told journalists as he arrived at the Cairo airport.

"President Arafat's state of health is serious and extremely worrying, so much so that we cannot assume he will stay alive without a miracle from God," he said.

Arafat has been in a military hospital outside Paris with deteriorating health since Oct 29.

"A large number of organs have stopped working but Arafat's heart continues to beat," he said.

Egyptian presidential spokesman Maged Abdul Fattah said earlier in the day that arrangements were being made after reports that President Hosni Mubarak had given the green light for a funeral ceremony to proceed in Cairo.

Palestinian authorities have agreed for the veteran Palestinian leader to be buried in the West Bank city of Ramallah.-AFP