Palestinian official Erekat hospitalized with COVID

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat has been hospitalized in Israel after contracting the coronavirus.

The 65-year-old was placed on a stretcher outside in his home in the occupied West Bank-- according to witnesses -- and taken by an Israeli ambulance.

Erekat, who is also secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization, confirmed he had COVID-19 on October 8th.

Many fear over his vulnerability to the virus as he underwent a lung transplant in the United States back in 2017.

Erekat has been one of the most high-profile faces of the Palestinian leadership for decades, especially to international audiences.

He is one of the most senior advisers to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, and has served in top positions.

Erekat is a proponent of a two-state solution

and has been a leading voice in opposing Israel's settlement policy in territory it captured in the 1967 Middle East war.