Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has written to US, French and German leaders after besieged Palestinian chief Yasser Arafat telephoned him with a plea for help, local media reported Monday.

Mahathir, who is in Copenhagen for the Asia-Europe Meeting (Asem), said he feared for Arafat's life and that his death would spark more violence, the official Bernama news agency said.

Mahathir, who leads a moderate Muslim state whose relations with the US have improved through his support for the war on terrorism, received a telephone call from Arafat on Friday, shortly before leaving Kuala Lumpur for Europe.

"Arafat told me he was under quasi-house arrest," Mahathir said. "This is a most extraordinary situation although I know they are doing this to him because of the recent attacks by suicide bombers.

"Even without Arafat these attacks will continue as they do not take their cue from him.

"I fear that if Arafat is killed he will be regarded as a martyr and this will lead to more violence, more bombing attacks."

Letter to Bush

Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar told Malaysian journalists travelling with the prime minister's delegation that Mahathir had written to presidents George W Bush and Jaques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schoeder to seek their intervention to resolve the siege of Arafat's headquarters.

Israeli forces have kept Palestinian leader Arafat surrounded in his West Bank compound for the past three days, demolishing every building but one. — AFP