This post began yesterday and is vaguely chronological.
According to Haaretz, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has suffered a significant stroke, perhaps a cerebral hemorrhage, and is undergoing surgery.
Jerusalem Post:
The prime minister was reportedly in serious condition and was suffering from a cerebral hemorrhage. He is currently undergoing emergency neurosurgery in an effort to stop internal bleeding in his brain.
According to a medical expert, the procedure is life threatening. Asked what are the chances of surviving this type of surgery, the doctor replied, “Let’s be optimistic, some people survive it.”
The prime minister’s close associates said of his condition: “Hope for a miracle.”
UPDATE 1: (AP) Sharon`s physician says he expects PM to emerge from surgery `safely.` According to CNN, Ra’anan Gissin describes Sharon’s condition as “stable.”
UPDATE 2: Haaretz Analysis:
A tragic end to Ariel Sharon’s one-man show. Sharon’s hospitalization will make it difficult for him to return to his job even if he gets through the treatment.
UPDATE 3: Watch Israeli English-Language TV News Online
UPDATE 4: The AP via New York Times
Doctors said Wednesday that the chances of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon making a full recovery from the massive stroke he suffered are slim.
The 77-year-old leader suffered a cerebral hemorrhage — bleeding in his brain — while en route to an Israeli hospital to have a hole in his heart fixed.
”It’s among the most dangerous of all types of strokes,” with half of victims dying within a month, said Dr. Robert A. Felberg, a neurologist who directs the stroke program at Ochsner Clinic in New Orleans.
UPDATE 5: 5:20 AM EST Thursday – Haaretz: Sharon in critical condition, taken to ICU after 9-hour surgery
Ariel Sharon emerged from hours of surgery Thursday morning with vital signs showing “functional and stable” levels, but the prime minister’s condition remained grave, said Professor Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Hadassah University Hospital, Ein Karem.
Neurosurgeons had fought to stabilize Sharon’s condition and stop new bleeding detected in his brain Thursday morning, more than eight hours after the prime minister was rushed into emergency surgery having suffered a “far-reaching” stroke and a massive brain hemorrhage.
“The prime minister had a CT scan that showed that the bleeding has stopped,” Mor-Yosef told reporters at the entrance to the Jerusalem hospital. “He was then put in the neurological emergency unit for observation.”
Here’s a “Me, too” – an Israeli animal-rights organization “has sent a letter to PM Ariel Sharon urging him to become vegetarian.”
Haaretz Analysis: Poor health succeeded in stopping Sharon
UPDATE 6: Thursday Evening
Arutz Sheva: Sharon Paralyzed, to Remain on Life-Support
UPDATE 7: Haaretz
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon sustained vast brain damage as a result of his stroke and ensuing cerebral hemorrhage, sources at Hadassah Hospital Ein Karem in Jerusalem said on Thursday evening.
On Friday morning, doctors will perform a CT scan on the premier’s brain, to check his condition. However, only on Sunday will doctors try to revive Sharon from his induced coma to determine the effects of the hemorrhage for the first time since it happened on Wednesday night.
The hospital director, Professor Shmuel Mor-Yosef, said on Thursday evening that predictions for the future are almost impossible to make. “We can’t know what the results of the surgery will be, whether it will have influenced his motor skills or his ability to think. Only after he comes out of the induced coma will we be able to make an assessment.”
UPDATE 8: Haaretz
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has probably suffered irreversible brain damage that would preclude his ever resuming office, Sharon’s doctors acknowledged Thursday night.
Top neurosurgeon: Chances of PM awaking soon are slim, damage could range from physical, mental impairment to permanent vegetative state.