Ailing Pakistani ex-PM Nawaz Sharif Flown Via Air Ambulance to London For Medical Treatment

Former Pakistani Prime Minister, Nawaz Sharif, will be seeking treatment for a serious illness in London and has been flown in an air ambulance on Tuesday, according to party leaders and officials.

Mr Sharif had left for London to receive treatment and will later arrive in the United States for further medical care, Maryam Aurangzeb, spokesperson for Sharif's Pakistan Muslim Leage-Nawaz (PML-N), confirmed in Tuesday.

Numerous senior PML-N leaders greeted Mr Sharif at the airport, with crowds of supporters gathering outside, Aurangzeb said.

The news comes after the Islamabad High Court suspended the former PM's sentence for eight weeks due to health concerns, and later approved his visit abroad for one month, where he will return to jail after receiving treatment in London and the US. 

Sharif, 69, was unable to receive treatment abroad due to being placed on an Exit Control list banning him from leaving the country without government approval.

Prime Minister Imran Khan added special conditions to his visit abroad, despite PML-N objections, including Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz Sharif's younger brother accompanying him in the air ambulance, who appealed to the Lahore High Court over the restrictions.

Sharif's treatment may be extended depending on his medical reports, a Lahore High Court ruling said, in addition to ordering the government to remove Sharif's name from the list.

Mr Sharif's was charged on corruption over allegedly laundering rougly Rs. 55.5m of money via sales of shares from Chaudhry Sugar Mills Ltd in 1992, the National Accountability Bureau said in October.

According to the watchdog, Sharif and his family were the biggest stakeholders at the time of the transfer, leading to his seven-year sentencing in December 2018. Mr Sharif was granted bail in late October due to his declining health, reportedly due to a series of angina attacks.