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Muqataa

The glossary is comprised of nearly 250 terms related to the Israeli-Palestinian context. Given the rapidly shifting landscape, these terms cannot capture the full range of nuances, narratives and historical events. This tool is meant as a starting point and we encourage you to continue your exploration of this topic through further research. Last update and review: September 2015.

Muqataa

Located in the Palestinian city of Ramallah in the central West Bank, the Muqataa is a compound housing the Palestinian Authority (PA)'s government offices. During the April 2002 Israeli military incursion, the Israeli army raided the compound, shelled and bulldozed a large section of it, and placed it under siege in an attempt to isolate PA President Yasser Arafat. The siege was a response to the Second Intifada amid Israeli claims that Arafat and others in the PA were supporting terrorism. Arafat was held under house arrest at the compound from April 2002-October 2004, after which he was flown to Paris, France for medical treatment, where he died on November 11, the cause of which remains controversial. The Muqataa is also now the site of Arafat's tomb. See "Inside Arafat's compound of rubble," BBC, September 22, 2002; and "Arafat mausoleum opened by Abbas," BBC, November 10, 2007.