Former Bangladesh prime minister Khaleda Zia’s health deteriorated since being admitted to hospital, prompting her family and party members to urge citizens to pray for her speedy recovery on Saturday.
Zia, 80, was admitted to hospital on November 23 with symptoms of a lung infection and was currently undergoing treatment in the intensive care unit, members of her party said.
Mirza Fakhrul Alamgir, from Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), told reporters late Friday that “doctors have told us that her condition is very critical”.
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Several senior BNP leaders and anxious supporters visited the hospital on Saturday to receive updates on her condition.
English-language newspaper, The Daily Star, said Zia had “heart problems, liver and kidney issues, diabetes, lung problems, arthritis and eye-related illnesses”.
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She had a permanent pacemaker and previously underwent stenting for her heart, the publication reported.
Zia’s eldest son, Tarique Rahman, who has been based in London since 2008, requested the people of Bangladesh pray for his mother’s recovery in a social media most on Saturday.