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Ehud Olmert, the first former prime minister in Israel’s history to go behind bars, was taken to a hospital Tuesday for a check-up, said an Israel Prison Service spokeswoman.
The 71-year-old, who must serve 27 months behind bars for corruption, had complained of chest pain, according to Israeli media reports.
Prison service spokeswoman Hana Herbst would not comment on the reasons for the hospitalisation.
The health news comes as Olmert awaits a court decision expected Thursday on whether he will have his sentence shortened.
The decision, which was supposed to come earlier, was delayed after police raided the publishing house that plans to put out his memoir.
Israel’s State Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that police were investigating whether Olmert had shared sensitive national security information in his upcoming memoir, written in prison, according to the Israeli news outlet Ynet.
Olmert, who served as premier from 2006 to 2009, had entered Maasiyahu Prison south-east of Tel Aviv in February 2016 for bribe-taking and obstruction of justice. (NAN)
