"The presidential elections will be held before Jan. 9. The leadership will meet to decide and check the exact dates," Qurei told reporters a day after Arafat was buried in his Ramallah compound, where he had been besieged by Israel for over three years.

Former Palestinian Parliament Speaker Rawhi Fattouh was sworn in as temporary chairman of the Palestinian National Authority on Thursday.

He will serve as caretaker chairman for 60 days until electionsare held.

Arafat, who led the Palestinians for four decades, passed awayat 3:30 a.m. (0230 GMT) Thursday at a French military hospital outside Paris, where he had received medical treatment for a mysterious illness since Oct. 29.

Source: Xinhua