The BBC's Middle East editor Jeremy Bowen looks back over the life of Yasser Arafat. Thousands of his supporters turned out when the Palestinian's body was flown back into Ramallah on the West Bank. "Love him or hate him, he was Mr Palestine," says Bowen. "In death as well as in life he was the symbol of the Palestinian people and their struggle for independence - much more than a politician." The Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's view was that Arafat was ' a murderer and a pathological liar'.Bowen has been reporting from the region for more than a quarter of a century. In this series, he combines first-hand accounts from the front line with an in-depth look into the region's history. He has witnessed endless wars between individuals, religious groups and full-sized states, jostling for military, political and economic Additional recordings courtesy of Hugh Sykes.This episode has been edited to replace sound effects archive which was incorrectly used. Produced by Mark Savage and Cara Swift.