GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — The Fatah Seventh Congress opened Nov. 29 in Ramallah and closed Dec. 4 without discussing the report by the commission of inquiry into the death of former Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, as some Fatah figures had anticipated.

Fahmi al-Zarir, the spokesman for the congress' preparatory committee, said Nov. 24, “The report by the commission of inquiry into Arafats' death will be discussed during a private session at the Seventh Congress, and it was added to the agenda.” The meeting, however, did not happen, and the final statement of the congress made no reference to Arafat's death.

Donia al-Watan reported Dec. 1 that a dispute had erupted on the first day, when the agenda distributed to participants did not include discussion of the report. The conflict arose most notably between Maj. Gen. Tawfiq Tirawi, the head of the commission of inquiry into Arafat's death, and the congress chairmanship.

Congress spokesman Mahmoud Abu al-Hija spoke to Al-Monitor about the report being left off the agenda. He said, “The report was not initially on the agenda because the investigation into the case is not over yet. Once completed, it will be shown to the Fatah leaders and Palestinian public.”