A Bruised Arafat Is Welcomed Home at Tunis Airport
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TUNIS, Tunisia — A color guard and flag-waving schoolchildren welcomed PLO leader Yasser Arafat home Friday in a brief ceremony three days after his plane crash-landed in the Libyan desert.
Arafat walked unassisted off a Libyan Arab Airlines jet onto a red carpet, where he was met by President Zine Abidine ben Ali.
One of Arafat’s eyes was swollen shut, and a huge bruise marked his face. He paused in heavy rain and saluted the Tunisian flag as the national anthem was played.
About four dozen children waved Tunisian and Palestinian flags and cheered the Palestine Liberation Organization chairman.
Three crew members were killed when Arafat’s plane crashed while en route from Sudan to Tunis.
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