FORMER Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak suffered a heart attack during questioning by prosecutors investigating graft and abuse allegations which prompted his admission to the hospital overnight, state television said.
The ex-leader was taken to a hospital in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh two days after reports that he was about to be summoned for questioning.
“Mubarak was admitted to the Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital this afternoon, amid a very heavy security presence in the town,” a security source said.
A hospital source refused to comment on the news and said that “the minister of health will make an announcement” shortly.
Mr Mubarak was admitted by his bodyguards to the VIP wing of the hospital, state television reported, adding that the hospital was not accepting any patients except for emergency cases.
Police cars and ambulances surrounded the hospital, as well as a heavy military police presence, state television said.
Mr Mubarak’s admission to the hospital follows state media reports that he was due to be questioned imminently over violence against protesters and alleged corruption.
Nationwide protests that erupted on January 25 and left an estimated 800 people dead forced Mr Mubarak to give up his 30-year grip on power and hand the reins to a military council.
On Sunday, public prosecutor Abdel Magid Mahmud ordered Mr Mubarak and his sons to be questioned, as part of a sweeping probe into corruption and abuse.
The former president will also be quizzed about allegations of graft, the official MENA news agency said.
After he resigned, Mr Mubarak and his family moved to a residence in Sharm el-Sheikh. Although he is subject to a travel ban, his relative freedom has been a thorn in the side of the military rulers.
Weekly protests demanding his trial have attracted tens of thousands and eventually led to a deadly clash with soldiers on Saturday after they tried to clear an overnight demonstration in Cairo’s Tahrir Square.
The military acknowledged that one person died on Saturday from a gunshot wound but denied it used force or live ammunition to disperse the protesters.
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