Mubarak Has Reportedly "Given Up," Wants to Die in Egypt
An anonymous source in Saudi Arabia's government has reportedly said that ailing ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak "has given up and wants to die" in the resort city he fled to last week.
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Mubarak reportedly left Cairo for the luxurious city of Sharm el-Sheikh sometime after addressing Egyptians on state television Thursday, telling them he had transferred his authority to his recently appointed vice president, Omar Suleiman. On Friday, after protesters rallied in anger against the leader's refusal to step down, Suleiman announced that Mubarak had resigned.
Reports have since surfaced that Mubarak is in ailing health.
"He is not dead but is not doing well at all and refuses to leave," the Saudi official told the Reuters news agency about Mubarak. "Basically, he has given up and wants to die in Sharm."
The official asked Reuters not to be named in its article.
Another unnamed source "with links to the Mubarak family" said, however, that Mubarak was "fine" and was even making phone calls, Reuters reported.
The Saudi official also told Reuters that the kingdom had reached out to Mubarak and offered to let him live in the neighboring Middle Eastern country in exile like recently ousted Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali. Reuters reported it could not confirm that offer with the Saudi government.
It's another twist in the mysterious tale of what the 30-year ruler has been up to after being chased from power. So far, Mubarak has been reported to be in a coma and on his deathbed in a German hospital.
