Obama praying for sick diplomat
US president Barack Obama said yesterday he was praying for critically-ill diplomat Richard Holbrooke, calling him "a towering figure in American foreign policy".
Mr Holbrooke, 69, the President's special envoy for Afghanistan and Pakistan, is in a critical condition after undergoing surgery on a torn aorta.
The veteran diplomat was meeting Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the US State Department on Friday when he collapsed and was rushed to nearby George Washington University Hospital.
Mr Obama said: "Richard Holbrooke is a towering figure in American foreign policy, a critical member of my Afghanistan and Pakistan team, and a tireless public servant."