Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/Yasser Arafat/archive2

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The following is an archived discussion of a featured article nomination. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the article's talk page or in Wikipedia talk:Featured article candidates. No further edits should be made to this page.

The article was not promoted 04:16, 23 October 2007.

[edit] Yasser Arafat

previous FAC withdrawn

The article on Yasser Arafat is very comprehensive, extremely informative, surprisingly fair and well-written. The article is currently rated as an A-class article (didn't deserve it at first). However, the article has doubled in size by expansion from when it was rated an A-class article and the improvements (referencing, cutting-down on external links, copyediting, establishing NPOV) have been made since then. As far as I can see there are two obstacles in the way. They are not major, however they should be addressed. --Al Ameer son 06:03, 13 October 2007 (UTC)

  • The first is the lack of images
  • The article needs a some sort of lock to keep vandalism on the low. --Al Ameer son 06:03, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Support Comment - yes, good treatment of a controversial figure. First piece I've read in ages that didn't paint him as either a saint or a devil. Otherwise:
  1. Intifada: you need to explain somewhere what an intifada is.
Done. I stated the Intifada's literal translation and that its usually defined as a rebellion. --Al Ameer son 23:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
  1. Bit clunky: Arafat engaged in continuous fighting with Israeli forces as well as attacks on Israeli civilians in the name of Palestinian self-determination. Perhaps: Arafat continuously fought with Israeli forces and attacked Israeli civilians in the name of Palestinian self-determination
I used the latter.--Al Ameer son 23:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
  1. Over euphemistic: In late 2004, after an extended period of confinement in his Ramallah compound at the behest of the Israeli government. Perhaps: In late 2004, after effectively being confined within his Ramallah compound for over two years by Israeli Defense Forces.
I used the latter. --Al Ameer son 23:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
  1. Slight expansion: perhaps include some detail of the political landscape in the Middle East; Anglo-French hegemony (Sykes-Picot agreement); Anglo-French adventurism (1956 Suez Crisis); the need for "strong men" to restore Arab dignity etc.
I really don't know where to put this information in the article nor do I know how I will state it or how much space it will take. If you can figure where to put it, I'll gladly add it to the article as well as the Balfour Declaration. However, I hope it is under a mutual understanding that this is background info and it shouldn't require much text. --Al Ameer son 23:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
Perhaps at the end of Birth and childhood? It only needs a couple of sentences to explain the post-colonial background he grew up in. --ROGER DAVIES TALK 00:18, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
I added the basic causes and results of the Arab Revolt, the Sykes-Picot Agreement and the Balfour Declaration and its influence on the Middle East. No more three or four sentences. The 1956 Suez Crisis is already addressed in the Education and 1948 Arab-Israeli War subsection and the concept of "strong men" needed to restore Arab dignity is highlighted in the Battle of Karameh subsection. --Al Ameer son 20:25, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
  1. Trivial stuff: a couple of days/months need wikilinking; (of burial) either refuse a request or ignore a wish; U.S. Navy > US Navy (consistency with other abbreviations); vomitted > vomited; Estripeau, needs initials or first name; Quran > Qur'an ; Al Hayat > Al-Hayat.
All has been done except the date linking. Its on the way though. --Al Ameer son 23:32, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
--ROGER DAVIES TALK 08:42, 13 October 2007 (UTC)
Date linking has been done and I just want to make sure that when you link months, are you supposed to link the particular year that comes after the month? The surgeon's name is Christian Estripeau and his statement has been referenced. --Al Ameer son 20:25, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Support. I've been working with Al Ameer son for a month on this article, and I'm very pleased to see it reach its current highly-polished state. He's done a fine job reaching an NPOV (very difficult for a person of such controversy), and the article's depth is matched by its thorough referencing. – Scartol · Talk 11:28, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Support. Article is very well written, follows WP:NPOV, and overall is a very good article on Yasser Arafat. Hello32020 16:11, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Oppose:
    • "The majority of Palestinian, Arab and Islamic people – regardless of political ideology or faction – viewed him as a heroic freedom fighter and martyr who symbolized the national aspirations of his people.[6] However, most Israelis have described him as an unrepentant terrorist.[7]" Those statements are not at all supported by the sources they are referenced to.
Observation The first statement is supported by a section embedded in the BBC article. The second one is a reasonable paraphrase, though would be better written as many Israelis saw him as an unrepentant terrorist. --ROGER DAVIES TALK 07:27, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
        • It isn't at all supported by it. That section gives the opinions of some Palestinians, no non-Palestinian Arabs or Muslims. And how are we supposed to know that these 15 or so people are representative for Palestinians, Arabs or Muslims in general? The article concerning the Israeli views only supports the claim that he was unpopular in Israel, no more. Besides, I think for a claim like "most Israelis believe..." or "most Arabs believe", we need more than the picture given by a BBC correspondant. A claim like that requires empirical data like surveys for example, especially if you consider the controversial nature of this topic.--Carabinieri 14:13, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
  • [Chuckle] I see where you're coming from but doubt that that is available anywhere. However, the Washington Post's obituary Nov 10, 2004 provides this: He was reviled by many Israelis, who saw in him a modern-day Hitler and revered by many Arabs, who loved him for restoring their shattered sense of honor.... To the Palestinians, for whom he forged an identity as a distinct people striving for national liberation, he was larger than life -- though hardly universally adored.
The reference states that the 15 out of 15 Palestinians surveyed/questioned/asked did view him as a freedom fighter and symbol of the national aspirations of the Palestinian people (not exact words of course). Other references also from the BBC that include random Palestinian views on him include this one [1] Even the leaders of rival organizations, Hamas and PIJ viewed him as their rightful leader, "steadfast when it came to the big and crucial issues in Camp David". PFLP spokesman Ahmad Sa'adat who says he and his organization differed with Arafat on many issues but claims "[Arafat] was distinguished for his sacrifice in the service of our national cause". Palestinian leaders are quoted here.[2]. The Arab opinion is varied (I assume) and the Islamic world I guess you can say is too broad, so these statements could be removed until they are specifically referenced. --Al Ameer son 19:39, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "Later in his career, Arafat engaged in a series of negotiations with the government of Israel to end the decades-long war between the two sides" It's unclear what two sides this is referring to. The Palestinians are not mentioned immediately before this sentence.
I revised. "Later in his career, Arafat engaged in a series of negotiations with the government of Israel to end the decades-long war between that country and the Palestinians." If you think its still not there please fix it. --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "In 1947, Arafat enrolled in the University of King Fuad I and graduated in 1950 with a passing grade." Is it possible to graduate with a failing grade?
Removed "with a passing grade" --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
Question I read this as a pass degree, as against an honors degree. Did you happen to know what he got?--ROGER DAVIES TALK 07:27, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
Aburish states Arafat "graduated with a pass grade". Thats all I know. I can look more into it if needed.
    • "However, during this period in his life he became an Arab nationalist and began procuring weapons to be smuggled into the former British Mandate of Palestine, for use by irregulars in the Arab Higher Committee and the Holy War Army militias." However? How does this contradict this statement contradict the one preceding it?
The statement preceding it, (He later claimed to have sought a better understanding of Judaism and Zionism by engaging in discussions with Jews and reading publications by Theodor Herzl and other prominent Zionists.) contradicts with the ideology of Arab nationalism which claims Zionism is a form of colonialism. --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "Fatah was allocated 33 of 105 seats of the PLO Executive Committee while the remaining 57 were left for several other guerrilla factions" Huh? 33+57=90
You're right that is strange. I have the book right in front of me, Aburish states,

"He accepted Hammouda's suggestion that Fatah should join the PLO as a member organization in the name of national unity, but not before Fatah was given 33 seats on the Palestine National Council, out of a total of 105 seats and 57 allocated to all the guerilla groups."

Perhaps those 90 seats were allocated to armed groups and the remaining 15 were given to political parties without armed branches or did not take part in any combat or guerrilla activity. --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "Prior to the couple's marriage in 1991, Arafat adopted fifty Palestinian war orphans.[63]" What couple? The context of this sentence is really odd.
Cleared up --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "Arafat narrowly escaped death again on April 7, 1992, when his aircraft crash-landed in the Libyan Desert during a sandstorm. The pilot and several passengers were killed; Arafat suffered broken bones and other injuries.[65]" The source says "Libyan desert", so I don't think it's necessarily referring to the Libyan Desert, but only to any desert in Libya. Further, the source claims that "two pilots and engineer" were killed, not the "pilot and several passengers". The source also says that Arafat was "bruised and shaken", not that he "suffered broken bones and other injuries". Come on! This is the third statement I've checked the source on and the third time the source didn't match the article.
I really apologize, I blame myself for not checking references placed by other users. Never really thought of it. This particular statement has been taken care of though. I really appreciate you taking up your time to look into references. --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
    • "Arafat's ability to adapt to new tactical and political situations was perhaps tested by the rise of the Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad organizations, Islamist groups espousing rejectionist opposition to Israel and employing new tactics such as suicide bombing, often intentionally targeting non-military targets, such as malls and movie theaters, to increase the psychological damage" This isn't at all a new tactic employed by the Hamas and the Islamists. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades linked to Arafat did this too.--Carabinieri 21:47, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades came into being during the Second Intifada, years after the founding of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. --Al Ameer son 23:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
What I'm saying is that the article currently sounds like suicide bombing civilian targets is something that Arafat was forced to deal with by Hamas even though he employed this tactic himself.--Carabinieri 14:16, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
Yes you can say his financial support for a sub-group of his Fatah organization is "employing this tactic himself". However this is still an allegation made by the Israeli and American government. If you read the Israeli FM ref you provided below it is very clear that is quite opinionated. I used the Israeli Foreign Minsitry reference you provided, not to prove that Arafat was involved in terrorist activity during the Second Intifada time period, but that the Israeli government claimed he did and that they found documents as evidence for it. However he publicly condemned these actions. We could back the allegation that he didn't necessarily support suicide bombings but he provided funds (not disputed) for the Fatah sub-groups that did. We can also include that he could indeed halt attacks by the Al-aqsa group, as commanders of the group have stated that they would respect any of Arafat's calls and decisions. --Al Ameer son 00:59, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
      • Also, the paragraph on Arafat's possible support of terrorism is unbalanced. Even the pro-Palestinian Human Rights Watch has accused Arafat of "disturbing indifference to, if not possible support for, Palestinian attacks on civilians" ([3]). The Israeli Foreign Ministry even comes to the conclusion that "Yasser Arafat was personally involved in the planning and execution of terror attacks. He encouraged them ideologically, authorized them financially and personally headed the Fatah Al Aqsa Brigades organization." ([4]). And, finally, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy claims that "PA funding of terrorism is well documented, both from the seized documents and from the millions spent on arms purchases".([5])--Carabinieri 22:55, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
Observation The intro says Arafat continuously ... attacked Israeli civilians in the name of Palestinian self-determination this is not in dispute. Otherwise, neither the Israeli Foreign Ministry nor the Washington Institute on Near East Policy(Guardian story) is an impartial source. --ROGER DAVIES TALK 07:27, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
But the European Union is?!--Carabinieri 14:13, 15 October 2007 (UTC)
No one is ever truly impartial, but at least the EU isn't perceived as being joined at the hip to Israel in the way that America sometimes/often is. --ROGER DAVIES TALK 08:09, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
I used the Israeli Foreign Ministry ref that Carabinieri provided with an apparently dead link provided by the IDF website to acutely cite the preceding text. This statement and other information on Arafat's role in terrorism carried out by Palestinians more detailed in the Terrorist activities and Relations with militant groups sections. --Al Ameer son 00:59, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Oppose, all kinds of cleanup needed before even looking at the prose. There is some very strange use of bolding and italics in the refs. See WP:MOSBOLD, WP:ITALICS and WP:CITE/ES; I left sample edits. See WP:MOSNUM and WP:UNITS on non-breaking hard spaces (sample edits left). Month-day combos should be wikilinked so date preferences will work, and date parameters should be linked in citations so they will display in a format consistent with the accessdate parameter (see sample edits). Pls see WP:MSH on caps in section headings; I fixed one. Prose should be audited for redundancy (see Tony1 (talk · contribs)'s exercises), example: During the 1962–1966 period, ... There is some overlinking; see WP:MOSLINK and WP:CONTEXT. Common words known to most English-speaking people, like roadblock and police, need not be linked; this detracts from high-value links which provide context, further information or definitions. Check spelling out versus using digits on numbers per WP:MOSNUM, for example: Over three hundred-thirty people were killed and many more wounded. (This occurs throughout; by the way, that number needs a citation.) The article succumbs to WP:PROSELINE. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 22:01, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
I'm editing the refs right now based on your sample edits. If I find date linking issues other than the references I'll fix them. The heading was a mistake by me and I know the rules on that. I can't believe I missed it. Common words that have been overlinked will be fixed. --Al Ameer son 00:59, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
  • I forgot to mention size: the readable prose size is 55KB. See WP:SIZE on guidelines on readable prose, 30–50KB. There are many sections which veer away from the bio of Arafat and could be better summarized to/from dauther articles, such as Fatah involvement in Lebanese Civil War and Jordan. The article could be trimmed to a tighter focus on Arafat bio. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 23:22, 14 October 2007 (UTC)
Right now, I think I could trim the text on Christian-PLO/LNM clashing. Do you see anything else in particular that needs to be pruned. --Al Ameer son 01:00, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
I've finished editing the reference and redundant links throughout the article and now I'll start working on the prose. However after I read the article again I've come to the conclusion that the article can be reduced to a minimum of 90KB or somewhere in the high 80s. Maybe not even that. However I don't think that will get in the way of it being a featured article though. The Barack Obama article is 111KB and Gerald Ford is 110KB; both are featured articles. --Al Ameer son 23:16, 16 October 2007 (UTC)
Please read WP:SIZE; both Barack Obama and Gerald Ford are within the 30 to 50 KB guidelines on readable prose size (their overall size is larger than Arafat because of citations). Arafat is still at 55KB readable prose and could be trimmed; WP:SIZE is not looking at overall size, it's looking at prose size. I'm traveling and will review further when I'm home. SandyGeorgia (Talk) 15:50, 22 October 2007 (UTC)

I wanted to inform you that I have addressed most of the issues you brought up about the Yasser Arafat article.

  1. Bold an and italic text in the references have been removed.
  2. I did not see any problems with month-date linking however I spotted and linked several month-year combos. Dates have been linked in citations.
  3. The capitalization in the heading you spotted was the only case of unnecessary caps in headings.
  4. I have fixed the overlinking problems.
  5. The issue of spelling out large numbers is defined as necessary for digits that are spelled in over two words. a thousand, twenty-eight, eleven, eighteen, one-hundred, etc. For numbers that were composed of three words I wrote the digits.
  6. I have removed several dates that weren't needed in the article and I tried to curb as much redundancy in the article as I could. --Al Ameer son 17:17, 20 October 2007 (UTC)
  • Comment Using "Notes" as a section for both precise citations of sources and a list of said sources makes it very difficult to get an overview of the references. It's sooo much easier if the notes are written in shorthand, at least for print sources, instead of providing all the details of the sources in the footnote itself. And I can't stress enough how utterly pointless and frustrating the use of citation templates are, especially in massive and frequently edited articles like this. They add gargantuan swathes of code that exacerbates editing, especially for newbies and editors who aren't all that fond of code to begin with, with only the very minute upside of placing (often arbitrary) details in correct (but also arbitrary) order. Peter Isotalo 10:48, 18 October 2007 (UTC)
The above discussion is preserved as an archive. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the article's talk page or in Wikipedia talk:Featured article candidates. No further edits should be made to this page.