Israeli PM Sharon in critical condition
(Reuters)
Updated: 2006-01-05 13:54

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was in critical condition after a brain hemorrhage on Thursday, setting the stage for political turmoil in Israel and knocking any hopes for peace talks with the Palestinians.

Six hours into surgery to stop the bleeding, a doctor said the operation was likely to take several more at hours at the hospital where Sharon, 77, was rushed for treatment late on Wednesday from his ranch in southern Israel.

Then-Israeli Major General in the Reserves Ariel Sharon (2nd R) confers with comrades during the 1973 Middle East War in the Sinai Peninsula, October 10, 1973 in this handout photo released by the Government Press Office. [Reuters]

"The prime minister is sedated and on a respirator. One could say his condition is grave," Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Jerusalem's Hadassah hospital, told reporters.

For decades, Sharon has been a dominant figure in shaping the Middle East.

His death or incapacitation would inevitably cause political upheaval ahead of a March 28 general election he had been expected to win on a platform of ending conflict with the Palestinians. He has been prime minister since 2001.

Hopes of any peace talks would be given another setback at a time of growing violence and increasing Palestinian turmoil.

Haaretz newspaper said on its Web site that Sharon was paralyzed in half of his body, and medical experts agreed the prime minister was unlikely to pull through the operation without his faculties being at least seriously impaired.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, right, and Vice-Premier Ehud Olmert attend a session in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, in this Wednesday Feb. 23, 2005 file photo.[AP]

"With all due caution, it appears as though the era of Sharon leading Israel has reached its tragic end," wrote Aluf Ben, Haaretz's diplomatic correspondent.

Sharon's prime ministerial powers were transferred temporarily to his deputy, Ehud Olmert, who was to hold an emergency cabinet meeting later. Recent polls have not shown Olmert to be seen as a long-term successor.