President Asif Ali Zardari. — Reuters

A US magazine on Wednesday claimed that President Asif Ali Zardari who had gone to Dubai for medical check-up may have angioplasty on Wednesday and he may resign from his office on account of "ill health", DawnNews reported.

A former US government official told The Cable that Washington was informed that Zardari had a 'minor heart attack' on Monday night and he flew to Dubai via air ambulance.

The report posted on the website of foreign policy magazine further claimed that Zardari was 'incoherent' during his telephonic conversation with President Barack Obama which took place over the weekend regarding the Nato air strikes.

"The noose was getting tighter —it was only a matter of time," the former official said, expressing the growing expectation inside the US government that Zardari may be on the way out.

Senior analyst Shuja Nawaz told The Cable that "this is the ‘in-house change option' that has been talked about."

Meanwhile, a Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) lawmaker and Sindh Information Minister Shazia Marri rebuffed the news of resignation and said the president had gone to Dubai for routine medical check-up.

The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) said it would consider the report authentic unless refuted by official sources.

Opinion

Editorial

Closed doors
Updated 08 Jan, 2025

Closed doors

The nation’s fate has been decided through secret deals for too long, with the result that the citizenry has become increasingly alienated from the state.
Debt burden
08 Jan, 2025

Debt burden

THE federal government’s total debt stock soared by above 11pc year-over-year to Rs70.4tr at the end of November,...
GB power crisis
08 Jan, 2025

GB power crisis

MASS protests are not a novelty in Pakistan, and when the state refuses to listen through the available channels —...
Fragile peace
Updated 07 Jan, 2025

Fragile peace

Those who have lost loved ones, as well as those whose property has been destroyed in the clashes, must get justice.
Captive power cut
07 Jan, 2025

Captive power cut

THE IMF’s refusal to relax its demand for discontinuation of massively subsidised gas supplies to mostly...
National embarrassment
Updated 07 Jan, 2025

National embarrassment

The global eradication of polio is within reach and Pakistan has no excuse to remain an outlier.