Richard Holbrooke, State Department special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, testifies before the House Appropriations State and Foreign Operations Subcommittee during a hearing on Oversight of U.S. Civilian Assistance for Afghanistan on Capitol Hill in Washington in this July 28, 2010 file photograph. Holbrooke, who was President Barack Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, died on December 13, 2010, CNN reported citing a senior U.S. official. He was 69. REUTERS/Molly Riley/Files (UNITED STATES - Tags: HEALTH POLITICS PROFILE IMAGES OF THE DAY)
12 Dec 2010 01:33:09 GMT
Source: Reuters
Background
• Pakistan floods 2010
• Afghan turmoil
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* Special representative for Afghanistan, Pakistan
* Painful condition is considered life-threatening
* Holbrooke met regularly with regional leaders (Adds Obama statement, paragraphs 5-6)
By Missy Ryan
WASHINGTON, Dec 11 (Reuters) - Richard Holbrooke, the veteran diplomat U.S. President Barack Obama tapped as his special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, was in critical condition on Saturday after surgery to repair a tear in his aorta, the State Department said.
The 69-year-old Holbrooke, who brokered the 1995 accord ending the Balkans war, has been a key player in Obama's efforts to turn around the faltering 9-year-old war in Afghanistan, where violence has surged and at least 477 U.S. soldiers have been killed this year alone.
Holbrooke fell ill at the State Department on Friday and was admitted to nearby George Washington University hospital.
"This morning, doctors completed surgery to repair a tear in his aorta," the State Department said on Saturday. "He is in critical condition and has been joined by his family."
Obama said in a statement he and his wife, Michelle, were praying for Holbrooke.
"Richard Holbrooke is a towering figure in American foreign policy, a critical member of my Afghanistan and Pakistan team, and a tireless public servant who has won the admiration of the American people and people around the world," Obama said.
A tear in this major artery of the body, known as an aortic dissection, is a painful and life-threatening condition that carries the risk of complications such as stroke, heart attack and kidney failure, according to Dr. Duke Cameron, chief of cardiac surgery at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore.
Recovery often entails a week in the hospital and three to four months for full recovery, said Cameron, who is not one of Holbrooke's doctors.
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"Half of the people who have it (a tear in the aorta) will die within 48 hours if there is no treatment for it," Cameron said in a telephone interview. "Even those who go to surgery, the chance of dying either in the operating room or a short time afterwards in 20 or 25 percent."
A prolonged absence for Holbrooke could be a blow to Obama's efforts to demonstrate swift progress in Afghanistan next year, when Washington hopes to start putting Afghan forces in the lead and start bringing U.S. troops home in July.
A frequent visitor to both Afghanistan and Pakistan, Holbrooke had worked to build personal relationships with the region's leaders, while at home he has sought to allay concerns in the U.S. Congress over the course of the war.
Holbrooke's illness comes just before the White House is due to roll out an assessment of the revised strategy for the troubled region that Obama unveiled a year ago.
Next week's review is expected to conclude that despite entrenched corruption and weak governance, U.S. and NATO forces are making progress on security in parts of Afghanistan. The review will not bring any major changes to strategy.
Kamran Bokhari, director for Middle East and South Asia at intelligence firm STRATFOR, said a lengthy absence for Holbrooke could be a short-term setback because he had developed a rapport with President Asif Ali Zardari and military leaders in Pakistan, and to a lesser degree with leaders in Kabul.
"It takes time for a new person to come in and pick up from where his predecessor left off. ... But in the long run, the role of one person is minimal, especially in a place like the United States with strong institutions," he said.
Some analysts have said Holbrooke's well-known confrontational style may have made him less effective in dealing with leaders grappling with fragile political institutions.
'MOST DIFFICULT JOB'
With a career that included stints in Vietnam as well as serving as the top U.S. diplomat for East Asia, for Europe and at the United Nations, Holbrooke's most notable achievement has been bringing all sides in the Bosnia conflict to the negotiating table in Dayton, Ohio. The resulting 1995 Dayton accords ended the conflict.
During congressional testimony on July 28, Holbrooke conceded that fighting a resurgent Taliban and helping to rebuild Afghanistan were massive tasks. But he repeatedly defended the Obama administration's strategy.
He called the Afghanistan mission "the most difficult job I've had in my career." But, he said, "Number one, on a personal note, I wouldn't be in this job if I thought it was impossible to succeed."
"We're not delusional," Holbrooke added, listing problems in Afghanistan from high illiteracy to trying to help its government be accountable to its own people.
Violence in Afghanistan has soared this year to its highest levels since the Taliban was ousted by U.S.-backed Afghan forces in 2001.
A year ago, when he announced his new strategy, Obama ordered 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan.
Some of those could start coming home in July as foreign troops begin transferring security control to local forces. President Hamid Karzai hopes to have Afghans in the lead across the country by the end of 2014. (Additional reporting by Glenn Somerville, Arshad Mohammed, Will Dunham and Matt Spetalnick; Editing by Jackie Frank and Peter Cooney)
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Biden hands Obama get-well letter to Saudi king's family
16 Dec 2010
Source: reuters // Reuters
WASHINGTON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - Vice President Joe Biden visited the New York hospital where Saudi King Abdullah is recuperating from surgery on Thursday and delivered a letter from President Barack Obama wishing him a speedy recovery, the White House said.
"The vice president was received by King Abdullah's family," including one of his sons, the White House said in a statement. "During his visit with King Abdullah's family, the vice president delivered a personal letter from President Obama for the king, wishing him a speedy recovery."
The king, thought to be around 86 or 87, had surgery on his back in New York in November after a blood clot complicated a slipped spinal disc. The kingdom's health minister said afterward that his health was "very reassuring."
King Abdullah underwent a second successful operation on Dec. 2 to stabilize vertebrae in his spinal column, the royal court said in a statement carried by the Saudi state news agency.
The royal court has not said when King Abdullah would return to his Gulf Arab kingdom, the world's largest oil exporter and a close U.S. ally. (Reporting by Matt Spetalnick)
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