Sharon still critical, being treated for pneumonia

JERUSALEM, Aug 15 (Reuters) Former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, comatose and suffering from double pneumonia, remained in critical but stable condition today, the hospital treating him said in a new medical bulletin.

The Chaim Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv said there had been no change from yesterday in Sharon's brain function nor significant damage to his vital systems.

The hospital said Sharon, who suffered a brain haemorrhage on January 4, remained in critical but stable condition. It disclosed yesterday that Sharon had developed pneumonia in his lungs and that his condition had deteriorated.

Israeli media said his two sons had rushed to Sharon's bedside after receiving special leave from their reserve military units, where they had been serving during fighting over the past month against Lebanon's Hizbollah guerrillas.

Doctors were continuing to administer antibiotics to Sharon, 78, to treat his double pneumonia, the spokeswoman said.

The former prime minister, first elected in 2001, has been comatose since his stroke. Sharon has since been succeeded by Ehud Olmert, whose government took office in May.

REUTERS KD VC1850