Malaysia's Former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad Hospitalized at 99

Malaysia's 99-year-old former prime minister, Mahathir Mohamad, has been admitted to hospital for coughing, his spokesman confirmed on Thursday. Mahathir has been at the National Heart Institute since Monday and will remain in hospital for a few days. His spokesman did not provide additional details on his condition.

The former premier, who has a history of heart problems, was last hospitalized at the same institute in January due to an unspecified infection and was discharged nearly three months later. Mahathir served as Malaysia's prime minister twice, with his first term ending in 2003 after 22 years in office.

Remarkably, he returned to power at the age of 92 in 2018 after leading the opposition coalition to a historic election victory against the party he once helmed. However, his government collapsed in less than two years due to internal strife.

(With inputs from agencies.)