Ousted Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak was on life support Tuesday after suffering a stroke in prison, officials said after conflicting reports emerged about the 84-year-old’s deteriorating health.
Mubarak, whose decades of iron-fisted rule came to an end during last year's "Arab Spring," was moved from a prison hospital to a military hospital earlier Tuesday evening, according to reports.
Initial reports suggested Mubarak had been declared clinically dead. It appears, however, that he suffered a stroke and his heart had to be restarted with a defibrillator.
A security official who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity said Mubarak was on life support.
Maj. Gen. Mohsen el-Fangari, a member of Egypt’s ruling military council, told the Al-Shorouk newspaper website that Mubarak was in a "very critical condition," but denied he was clinically dead as Egyptian state television had reported.
Mubarak's wife, Suzanne, came to the hospital where Mubarak was in an intensive care unit, another security official told AP.
"Essentially, the ruling military council is saying he's on a respirator, he's unconscious, but he's not clinically dead," CTV's Middle East Bureau Chief Martin Seemungal told CTV News Channel from Cairo.
"Right now very difficult to figure out what's going on, because we're getting so many conflicting reports. But the latest official word, and two sources have said this, is that he is not clinically dead."
Mubarak's health has been in question since June 2, when he was convicted of failing to prevent the killing of hundreds of protesters during last spring's uprising. He was sentenced to life in prison.
Since then, reports have suggested he has suffered from health scares ranging from high blood pressure to breathing difficulties.
After hearing his guilty verdict, an unconfirmed report on state television suggested Mubarak had suffered a heart attack aboard the helicopter that was transporting him to Torah prison hospital.
Mubarak was ousted from power in February 2011 after 18 days of often violent protests across Egypt. In Cairo, Tahrir Square became the heart of the uprising, and its where thousands of people gathered after Mubarak's conviction three weeks ago.
Despite Mubarak's move from iron-fisted ruler to convict, the mood in Egypt has been tense in recent days, as two candidates both declared victory following a landmark presidential election over the weekend.
On Monday, a spokesperson for Mubarak's former prime minister, Ahmed Shafiq, said his candidate won with 51.5 per cent of the vote. On Sunday, the Muslim Brotherhood's candidate, Mohammed Morsi, declared victory.
Official results are expected on Thursday.
The showdown followed a so-called "constitutional declaration" last Sunday by military leaders that stripped the next president of many powers. It gave the generals who succeeded Mubarak specific legislative powers, as well as control over the process for drafting a constitution.
Thousands of people had spilled into Tahrir Square Tuesday to protest the measures.
