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Palestinian prime minister suffers heart attack in Texas

By the CNN Wire staff
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Unity government could lose key figure
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
  • NEW: U.S. State Department is in touch with Fayyad
  • Salam Fayyad is hospitalized in good condition
  • Fayyad had a blocked artery that was corrected, a spokesman says
  • Fayyad was in Austin, Texas, for his son's college graduation

Washington (CNN) -- Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad suffered a heart attack while visiting the United States and was hospitalized for treatment, according to a spokesman from the Palestinian Authority on the West Bank.

Fayyad felt chest pains Sunday while visiting Austin, Texas, for his son's graduation from the University of Texas, Dr. Ghassan Khatib said from Ramallah early Tuesday. The prime minister was hospitalized and doctors found a blocked artery that they corrected, Khatib said.

Fayyad is in "good condition" at Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas, spokesperson Adrienne Lallo told CNN on Monday.

The State Department is aware of the situation and has been in touch with Fayyad since he was stricken, according to a State Department official who spoke to CNN on condition of not being identified.

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Fayyad currently is prime minister of the Palestinian Authority. He is not a member of either of the formal rival factions Fatah or Hamas, which are to form a new transitional reconciliation government. It is unclear what role Fayyad will play in that new government.

CNN's Kevin Flower and Jamie Crawford contributed to this story.