Coronavirus: No Change in Saeb Erekat's Health Condition

The family of Saeb Erekat, Secretary-General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), revealed on Sunday that there is no change in his health condition, according to WAFA Palestinian news agency.

Salam Erekat added that her father is still breathing using an ECMO device which supports the respiratory functions.

"He underwent a bronchoscopy last week which showed the absence of any bacteria or viruses in the lungs," she added.

However, she said that a type of fungus was detected which affects people with weak immunity.

She wished that her father would recover very soon and beat the coronavirus.

It is worth mentioning that, a member of Fatah, the most powerful faction within the PLO, Erekat has been one of the most high-profile faces of the Palestinian leadership for decades, especially to international audiences.

Erekat, 65, has been receiving medical care at home since disclosing on October 8 that he had contracted the virus.

The former Palestinian chief negotiator and architect of the Oslo Accords (1993-95) with Israel suffered a heart attack in 2012 and in 2017 received a lung transplant.

There is heightened concern over his vulnerability because he underwent a lung transplant in the United States in 2017. Witnesses said Erekat was on a stretcher when he was placed inside an Israeli ambulance outside his home in Jericho.