PM’s Office takes over hospital ward
Sharon aides set up office in hospital room, prime minister said to be in full control
The State of Israel is being run from a special ‘headquarters’ set up in the ward where Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is hospitalized at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Ein Kerem Hospital.
Aides and advisors to the prime minister literally took over a room adjacent to Sharon’s bed usually used by doctors who serve in the ward, albeit with the consent of hospital management.
The Prime Minister’s Office is running the country’s political affairs from this room where advisors consult with Sharon, who has been reported to be “fully in control of the situation.”
“The situation is under control. The prime minister is managing everything and is being updated on a regular basis,” aides said Monday.
Sunday, when news broke that Sharon has been hospitalized, Cabinet Secretary Yisrael Maimon consulted with aides and ministers and updated Attorney General Menachem Mazuz on the health of the prime minister.
Assaf Shariv, Sharon’s spokesman, updated the local and international press; The Prime Minister’s Office Director Ilan Cohen spoke with Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer to reassure them that Sharon is fit to resume his duties soon.
Cohen was ordered to return to the Prime Minister’s Office Monday morning to manage affairs from there.
Meanwhile, ministers have been ordered to pursue their duties as usual. Aides added that the prime minister is also in control of the country’s security situation with his Military Secretary mediating between the IDF and Sharon.
