Suha Arafat, wife of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, denied any involvement in money laundering, accusing Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of fabricating baseless allegations to cover up his own corruption.

Her statement followed a report published in the weekly French newspaper Le Canard Enchaine, which said that French prosecutors are investigating bank transfers of $11.5 million to two accounts controlled by Suha Arafat.

Over the telephone, Suha told the London-based Arabic daily Al Hayat that Sharon is in a big impasse, facing corruption charges and bribery scandals, and this is why he is pointing finger at others.

She said Sharon is facing two separate investigations, both involving his sons and relating to alleged violation of election fund-raising laws.

Suha said that she was not called in by the French public prosecutor or any other official for investigations. Commenting on these allegations, Suha said as long as there is Palestinian-Israeli conflict, Sha-ron and Israelis will not stop in their attempts to tarnish the image of Arafat and his family.

They try their best to discredit the Palestinian cause as they kill Palestinian children, men and women. "The attempt to assassinate the Palestinian identity represented in Yasser Arafat and his family is not new for us" she said.

"But, the thing, which has really surprised me that some Arabic newspapers had published such allegations without making sure of their credibility," Suha added.