Egypt on Thursday prepared to receive the body of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and, a day later, give him a military funeral and a horse-carriage procession. Presidential spokesman Maged Abdel Fattah told The Associated Press the "military funeral" would be held at 0900 GMT Friday. He did not specify where, but preparations were under way at Cairo International Airport and a nearby mosque. By early morning Thursday, police had lined the streets and taken up positions on high buildings, including mosques, and on major roads leading to the airport. Palestinian officials started arriving to Cairo late Wednesday to discuss funeral arrangements. More were expected Thursday. Airport security officials said Arafat's body would arrive from Paris at 11 p.m. (2100 GMT) and be kept overnight in a a nearby hospital. A meeting of senior security officials was expected later Thursday to finalize plans for the funeral procession. Gen. Abdul-Fattah Badran, an airport official overseeing preparations at the mosque, said much work was being done for the funeral. "We are trying to make it as great as the man for tomorrow," he told The Associated Press. Egypt announced three days of mourning, and the Cairo-based Arab League announced seven, flying its flag at half-mast. Arafat was to be buried in the West Bank after the funeral.
