Former president of Israel Shimon Peres suffered a stroke and was rushed to the hospital Tuesday night. The 93-year-old is now sedated and on a respirator at Tel Hashomer Hospital near Tel Aviv, according to his office.
Israeli TV stations are reporting that the stroke is serious, and Peres has a bleed in his brain. He was admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit and is expected to receive a CT scan shortly. Peres’ hospital room is being guarded by police.
Peres was previously hospitalized in January after suffering a mild heart attack, after which he underwent catheterization for arrhythmia. He was in the hospital once again last week to have a pacemaker inserted.
Israeli Labor Party chairman Isaac Herzog tweeted: “We wish you, our dear former president, Shimon Peres, a speedy recovery and swift return to voicing your clear words of wisdom.”
מאחל לך נשיאנו לשעבר ויקירנו לתמיד שמעון פרס שתחלים במהרה ותשוב להשמיע את קולך החכם הצלול והמפוכח. רפואה שלמה!
— יצחק הרצוג Isaac Herzog (@Isaac_Herzog) September 13, 2016
Peres held nearly every senior leadership position in Israel during a political career that spanned seven decades. He served for seven years as president, three terms as prime minister, and took turns as foreign minister and finance minister. In 1994, he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his work on the Oslo Accords, an interim peace deal he reached with Palestine in 1993. Peres is also credited with founding Israel’s nuclear reactor in Dimona during his time as a defense official in the late 1950s and early 1960s.