"What's happened to me here is not important," Yasser Arafat said on Thursday after Israel ended the five-week siege on his Ramallah headquarters. "What's important is what's happening at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity. That's a crime."

Israeli forces have besieged up to 200 Palestinians - some armed - as well as church clerics at the holy site for a month. Thursday saw a heavy exchange of fire between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians barricaded inside the church. Fire broke out and was quickly subdued, leaving both sides blaming each other for starting the blaze deliberately.

Arafat said he was "furious" about the nighttime shooting at the Church of Nativity. "This is a holy sacred place, not only for the Christians, but for the Christians and for the Muslims. How are they keeping silent?" Arafat asked.

Arafat defiant

On Thursday morning, Arafat was able to leave his Ramallah headquarters for the first time in five weeks. Stepping out of the destroyed complex, he blinked into the bright sunlight, smiled broadly and flashed the V-for-victory sign. Arafat was greeted by hundreds of cheering Palestinians.

The virtual house-arrest was ordered five weeks ago by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon after a series of Palestinian suicide attacks. Sharon accused Arafat of being responsible for the attacks that killed dozens of Israelis and declared him Israel's enemy.

But the five-week siege failed to isolate the Palestinian leader. His popularity among his people has grown, along with international sympathy for him.

U.S. brokered deal

The end of the siege met a key demand of world leaders who have been trying to mediate in the conflict for weeks. The Israeli pullout followed a deal in which the Palestinian authority placed six men wanted by Israel into the custody of American and British security officials. It also smoothed the way for a visit planned by Sharon to Washington next week to meet President George W. Bush.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that Palestinian President Yasser Arafat was free to leave the region. But Sharon added that if Arafat traveled abroad, he could not guarantee that the Palestinian leader would be allowed to return to the West Bank. "We are not giving any guarantees for that," Sharon said, "because usually in the past when he left, it was always a sign for a wave of terror."

No Jenin probe

Despite Arafat's release, tensions remained high on Thursday following UN Secretary General Kofi Annan's decision to call off a United Nations fact-finding mission to the Palestinian refugee camp at Jenin.

The Palestinians say Israeli forces massacred civilians during its military operation in Jenin. But Israel says its attack on the camp was legitimate self-defense.

The Israeli government initially welcomed the prospect of an independent investigation. But then blocked efforts by international organizations to investigate what really occurred. Israel said the UN mission was flawed from the start and set a series of conditions for the investigation which the United Nations was not willing to meet.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan warned that what he called the "long shadow" cast by recent events at the refugee camp would remain.

Was it a massacre or a legitimate battle against terrorism? The international community still wants answers. But the more time goes by, the more difficult it will be to uncover the truth about what happened in Jenin.