Erekat rushed to Hadassah hospital in serious condition
Veteran PLO official Saeb Erekat, who contracted the coronavirus earlier this month, was transferred to HadassahUniversity Medical Center in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem on Sunday in serious condition.
Erekat, 65, underwent a lung transplant in the US in 2017 after suffering from pulmonary fibrosis, a condition that scars the lungs and damages their ability to circulate oxygen.
According to the hospital, Erekat is in the intensive care unit for corona patients and required high- flow oxygen therapy. He was not ventilated and was deemed stable.
“Mr. Erekat is receiving topnotch professional care like all serious corona patients at Hadassah and the staff will do everything to assist his recovery. At Hadassah, we treat every patient as if he were our only patient,” said the hospital’s director, Prof. Zeev Rothstein.
Several members of the Palestinian ruling Fatah faction in east Jerusalem arrived at the hospital to inquire about Erekat’s condition.
Erekat is the most senior Palestinian official to be admitted to an Israeli hospital.
“Due to the chronic health problems he faces in the respiratory system, Dr. Erekat’s condition now requires medical attention in a hospital,” the
PLO said in a statement.
Erekat, who previously served as chief Palestinian negotiator with Israel, is currently secretary- general of the PLO. He is also a member of the Fatah Central Committee.
The decision to transfer Erekat to an Israeli hospital came after his condition deteriorated over the past 24 hours, Palestinian sources told The Jerusalem Post.
The Palestinian Authority made an urgent request to Israel to allow Erekat, who lives in Jericho, to be transferred to an Israeli hospital immediately, the sources said.
Erekat was fully conscious while being taken to Hadassah in an Israeli ambulance, they said.
On October 9, Jordan’s King Abdullah instructed his government to provide Erekat with any medical care he requires.
Another senior PLO official, Hanan Ashrawi, was diagnosed with the coronavirus earlier this month.