French court rules out murder probe over Yasser Arafat's death

A French court has refused to reopen an investigation into the death of former Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat amid suspicions that he was poisoned, saying there is no legal ground for an eventual murder trial.

The general prosecutor's office in Versailles said on Friday that an appeals court upheld a decision by investigating judges who dismissed the case last year, saying there is no evidence that Mr Arafat was murdered.