(MENAFN- IANS) Dhaka, Dec 5 (IANS) Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson and former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia is unlikely to travel to London before Sunday for advanced treatment following delay in her scheduled medical flight and slight deterioration in her health condition, local media reported on Friday citing the BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam.

Speaking to Bangladeshi media outlet UNB, Fakhrul said that the special air ambulance provided by the Emir of Qatar could not arrive in Dhaka on Friday due to technical issues.

"The air ambulance is not arriving today because of a technical issue. If everything goes well, it may reach Dhaka on Saturday," the BNP leader said.

According to Fakhrul, the final decision on whether Khaleda Zia will fly to the UK will depend on her health on the day of travel, adding that her physical condition worsened slightly on Thursday night.

“A medical procedure will be done today, after which the doctors will decide whether she is fit to fly. Everything depends on her health. If madam is fit for the journey and the medical board gives approval, then she will fly on Sunday (December 7)," he stated.

Earlier on Thursday, Khaleda Zia's personal physician and BNP Standing Committee member A Z M Zahid Hossain said that the former Prime Minister was expected to be flown to London for advanced medical treatment on Friday.

Addressing a press briefing outside Evercare Hospital in Dhaka, Zahid said that a medical board comprising local and foreign specialists had unanimously agreed on the decision.

“She will be taken to London by a Qatar Royal air ambulance. We have selected a hospital in London for her treatment, and we will take her there," the UNB quoted Zahid as saying.

The 80-year-old former Prime Minister has been battling multiple long-standing ailments, including cardiac issues, diabetes, arthritis, liver cirrhosis, and kidney problems.

She remains under intensive observation in the Coronary Care Unit (CCU) of the hospital, with both local and foreign specialist doctors overseeing her treatment.

Reports suggest that Khaleda Zia was admitted to Evercare hospital on the night of November 23, following the medical board's advice, after being diagnosed with infections affecting her heart and lungs.

As her condition worsened, she was moved to the CCU of the hospital on November 27.

MENAFN05122025000231011071ID1110442538