Palestinian Negotiator Erakat Suffers Heart Attack

Veteran Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat has undergone an operation after suffering a heart attack on Tuesday, his wife and medical sources told Agence France Presse.

The 57-year-old "woke at dawn with chest pains and decided to go to the Palestine medical complex in Ramallah where he underwent medical tests," said his wife, Naama Erakat, referring to the city's main hospital.

"It turned out he had suffered a heart attack, so they performed an emergency catheterization at hospital, which was successful," she said.

Hospital director Ahmed Bitawi said "a blood clot was found in one of his arteries which was opened during the operation."

Erakat was recovering from the procedure but "needed a period of rest," he added.

Erakat has been a member of every Palestinian negotiating team since 1991, with the notable exception of those who secretly conducted talks ahead of the 1993 Oslo Accords.