They had just spent 10 days sharing six bathrooms with 200 people

They had just spent 10 days sharing six bathrooms with 200 people. Food inside was heavily rationed.Yet it was a triumph of sorts for Mr Arafat. For the first time in months, he appeared to have got the best of his old adversary Mr Sharon. The Israeli army had relaxed the siege without winning a single concession from him. More than that, Mr Arafat’s standing among Palestinians has been transformed by the siege. Before it began, he was under pressure from Palestinians demanding reform His entire cabinet had been forced to resign. Leading Palestinians were manoeuvring to push Mr Arafat into appointing a prime minister to take over his day-to-day work.But the siege brought Palestinians streaming on to the streets to demonstrate in support of Mr Arafat.

So revitalised is his popularity that Mr Arafat’s aides and advisers coming out of the compound yesterday were confident enough to say that the question of a prime minister was finished with.Last time the Israeli army besieged Mr Arafat in his compound, in the spring, his popularity dived after he made a deal to hand over wanted men. It appeared there was no deal yesterday – though there could yet be one. The Israelis have not withdrawn altogether.Palestinians in Ramallah were under no illusions. It was American pressure that had made the Israeli soldiers pull back, and they had not withdrawn altogether, people said. But they seemed pleased that Mr Arafat appeared not to have backed down. “People trust Arafat more now,” said one man who did not give his name. “If he had made a deal he would have lost his popularity.”Terje Roed-Larsen, the UN’s Middle East envoy, who earlier warned that the siege could destroy hopes for a Palestinian state, rushed to the compound This was an opportunity to move forward, he said.

Now the Israelis had backed down, it was “up to Arafat”.Salam Fayyad, the Palestinian Finance Minister, said of the withdrawal: “It is a step in the right direction. But you have to remember that it is only that because it is a reversal of a step in the wrong direction.”. Salman Khan is a pampered star of Bollywood: a man of great wealth, good looks, fame and vanity whose mood swings and love affairs make the Indian gossip columns. After being charged with causing death by rash and negligent driving, he was released on 950 rupees (£13) bail.Newspapers declared the actor “spoilt” and a “superbrat”.India’s Sunday Express ran the headline “Mowing Down in Mumbai starring Salman Khan” and accused the actor of “strutting with cops”..