Egypt's Mubarak Is 'Critical'

Egypt's ailing former president Hosni Mubarak is slipping in and out of consciousness eight days after he was transferred to a hospital inside a Cairo prison to serve his life sentence, a security official inside Torah prison said today. In order to squash rumors of his death, authorities granted his wife, Suzanne Mubarak, and two daughters-in-law special permission to visit him this morning. Since, he has suffered an irregular heartbeat and required assistance in breathing. The official said that Mubarak lives only on liquids and yogurt.

Mubarak's health is reported to have collapsed since his June 2 conviction. His life sentence saw him transferred immediately to a prison hospital, and authorities have turned down several requests by Mubarak's family to transfer him back to a military facility. Suzanne Mubarak has reportedly lashed out at wardens for not giving her husband permission to seek treatment outside the prison. "You will be responsible for his death," she allegedly said. Yesterday, Egypt's state run news agency quoted officials as saying that Mubarak is at risk of stroke. (More Hosni Mubarak stories.)