Saeb Erekat
Palestinian negotiator Erekat receives lung transplant
Saeb Erekat undergoes successful lung transplant surgery at the Inova Fairfax Hospital in Northern Virginia; he has been suffering from pulmonary fibrosis, lung disease characterized by scars in lung tissue, which makes it difficult for them to function properly.
Chairman of the Executive Committee and chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat underwent a successful lung transplant
surgery on Thursday in the United States.
Erekat, 62, who has led peace negotiations with Israel over the past 20 years, underwent the surgery at the Inova Fairfax Hospital in Northern Virginia.
He has been suffering from pulmonary fibrosis, which is characterized by the development of scars in lung tissue, which makes it difficult for them to function properly.
Saeb Erekat (צילום: AP)
The disease manifests itself in shortness of breath, coughing and loss of the ability of the lungs to transfer oxygen to the body. He was diagnosed more than a year ago.
Erekat had been treated with drugs, but a few months ago, medication stopped being effective and his condition worsened.
He began medical treatment in one of Israel's hospitals, but doctors made it clear to him that he had to undergo a lung transplant to survive. He was consequently put on the waiting list for a lung transplant in Israel, Jordan and the United States.
