Former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak was in a coma Monday, a spokesman for Egypt's Interior Ministry said.

"Mubarak entered today into full coma. His two sons Gamal and Alaa submitted a request to the prison authority to move beside him and it has been accepted. His health has been deteriorating since the verdict, with high blood pressure, problems breathing, and irregular heart beat," Interior Ministry spokesman Alaa Mahmoud said.

Mubarak's lawyer has submitted a request that he be moved from prison to a private hospital, Mahmoud said.

Mubarak, 84, is in a Cairo prison hospital after being sentenced to life in prison for the killing of pro-democracy demonstrators last year. Mubarak was already suffering from health problems and attended court on a gurney.



