Israeli Hospital Confirms PLO's Erekat in "Critical Condition"

The Secretary General of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Saeb Erekat's health deteriorated, earlier Monday, and he is now in a "critical condition" as a result of coronavirus-related complications, according to Hadassah Israeli Medical Centre.

The hospital said that the senior Palestinian negotiator is suffering from respiratory complications and is sedated and connected to a ventilator.

It is worth mentioning that, on Sunday, Erekat, was transferred to an Israeli hospital in Tel Aviv for treatment of a worsening coronavirus infection.

In a statement, the PLO said that Erekat’s health condition requires medical attention in a hospital due to the chronic health problems he faces in the respiratory system.

It said he would be treated at a hospital in Tel Aviv, but did not identify the facility.

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 Erekat’s 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.