FORMER Israeli president Shimon Peres was in a "serious but stable" condition after suffering a major stroke, doctors said Wednesday, as the nation rallied in prayer and support for the 93-year-old elder statesman and Nobel Peace Prize laureate.
Dr Yitzhak Kreiss, director of the Sheba Medical Centre near Tel Aviv, said Mr Peres was in a medically-induced coma to allow him to rest after experiencing significant bleeding in the brain.
Mr Peres was taken to hospital on Tuesday after feeling ill, and after a battery of tests was found to have suffered a stroke. Dr Kreiss said Mr Peres was being transferred to a neurosurgical intensive care unit where he would continue to be evaluated.
Rafi Valden, Mr Peres' son-in-law and personal physician, gave an optimistic forecast, saying that he was responsive when addressed and even squeezed a hand when asked to.
"We are happy to remark then, when the sedation was a little lessened, he was reactive," he said. "We'll keep very close to him during the day and hopefully next time when the sedation will be lessened we hope we are going to be able to get in touch with him."
Mr Peres is the elder statesman of Israeli politics, one of the country's most admired symbols and the last surviving link to its founding fathers.
Over a seven-decade career, he has held virtually every senior political office, including three stints as prime minister and extended terms as foreign, defence and finance minister. He won the 1994 Nobel Peace Prize for his work in reaching an interim peace agreement with the Palestinians.
He had remained active since completing his seven-year term as president in 2014. His spokeswoman Ayelet Frisch said Tuesday was no exception, waking early to read the daily newspaper before delivering an hour-long lecture and then uploading a video to his Facebook account in which he encouraged the public to buy locally-made products. In the video, he appears weary but is otherwise alert and coherent.
Mr Peres is known to maintain a healthy lifestyle and has long prided himself on his longevity and stamina.
Earlier this year he was twice hospitalised for heart problems but quickly released. His office said he received a pacemaker last week.
Long a divisive figure in Israeli politics, Mr Peres finally became one of Israel's most popular public figures in his later years.
"In his people's eyes he ceased to be a politician. He became a historic figure, larger than politics, larger than everyday affairs, a figure in a league of his own," wrote Yediot Ahronot columnist Nachum Barnea.
As word of his stroke spread, Mr Peres was showered with well wishes from political friends and foes alike.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who defeated Mr Peres in 1996 to become prime minister, called the hospital to enquire about his condition and posted a Facebook message wishing him a speedy recovery.
"Shimon, we love you and the entire nation wishes you get well," Netanyahu said.
