KABUL: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday wished ailing Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif a speedy recovery from his illness.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s family and his office have said that he would undergo open heart surgery in London on Tuesday, his second cardiac operation in five years.
In a message posted on Twitter on Sunday, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said he would like to send his best wishes to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, expressing the hope that the surgery goes alright.
"We pray for his speedy recuperation,” he said in his message for the Pakistani leader who is due to undergo an open heart surgery on Tuesday in London.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Afghan president Ashraf Ghani also wished Sharif well for his surgery.
"My best wishes to PM Nawaz Sharif Sahab for his open heart surgery on Tuesday. And for his speedy recovery & good health," said a tweet from Modi, who made a surprise visit to Sharif in December as a gesture of conciliation between the two nuclear-armed rival states.
66-year-old Sharif left for London earlier this week for medical check-ups where his doctors decided to carry out the surgery.
Earlier today, Nawaz's brother Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif also departed for London to accompany the family during the premier’s surgery. The younger Sharif was accompanied by his son Hamza Shahbaz and is expected to return to Pakistan either on Wednesday or Thursday.
On Saturday, the chief minister made an appeal on Twitter, asking his fellow countrymen to pray for Nawaz Sharif's health and speedy recovery.
On Friday, PM Sharif's daughter Maryam Nawaz Sharif said on her official Twitter account that the surgery would be for "perforation of the heart", a complication from an earlier procedure in 2011.
"Prayers are the most effect & potent medicine. Millions will pray for him," she tweeted late Friday night.
A statement from the prime minister's office said the prime minister was continuing to oversee state affairs in the days before his surgery.
"It is however natural and understandable that the Prime Minister will be off from any activities when is actually operated on by the doctors," the statement said.
"God willing soon after the surgery, the Prime Minister will be supervising State's affairs with the same spirit and energy."
Sharif has frequently travelled abroad for medical treatment in the past year. His latest absence due to his scheduled surgery has sparked a debate back in his country as to who should discharge his duties.