Arafat's friend shot dead at hotel

Three masked men have shot and killed the director of Palestinian Television in Gaza City.

The victim, Hisham Miki, 54, was close to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and was a member of Arafat's Fatah movement.

It is not immediately clear whether the assailants had political or personal motives. Mr Miki was meeting friends at Gaza City's Beach Hotel.

After the meeting, he left the hotel and was approached by three masked men who shot him in the chest.

Mr Miki was pronounced dead at nearby Shifa Hospital.

Mr Miki, a father of seven, has served as the director of Palestinian Television since 1994 and later founded the Palestinian Satellite Channel.