REPORTS from Egypt are saying that former Egyptian strongman, Hosni Mubarak is in critical condition following a case of cardiac arrest and stroke that he suffered earlier on Tuesday.
The 84-year old leader who relinquished power after massive popular protests against his continued rule had been bedridden for months, even as he faced a court trial for the killings of demonstrators who eventually downed his reign as president.
“We were informed by prison authority that Mubarak’s heart has stopped and they used electric shocks and CPR to resurrect him,” Adel Saeed, official spokesman of the Egyptian prosecutor, told CNN. “He is now on an artificial respirator and doctors from the armed forces and International Medical Center will inspect him.
State-run Nile TV reported that Mubarak, 84, suffered a stroke.
He was taken from Tora prison hospital to Maadi military hospital, his defense lawyer, Fareed El Deeb, told CNN. “He has suffered a stroke, but he is not dead,” El Deeb said.
But the prosecutor and the military council denied Mubarak had been moved.
His health has been reported to be in decline since he was ousted as president of Egypt in February 2011 and tried on charges related to the killings of anti-government demonstrators during the revolution.
Last week, an Interior Ministry spokesman said he was comatose; the spokesman said he suffered from high blood pressure, irregular heartbeats and difficulty breathing.