Jerusalem ( CNN ) -- Officials at the hospital in Israel where former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is being treated described him Thursday as being in `` extremely critical '' and `` grave '' condition , with his family is by his side . `` In the last few hours there has been a deterioration in Ariel Sharon 's medical condition , '' said a spokesman for Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer . `` He continues to be in critical condition . '' Earlier this week , the center 's director , Zeev Rotstein , had said doctors were unable to stabilize Sharon 's kidney function and other vital systems and that the danger to Sharon 's life had grown . The 85-year-old has been in a coma for eight years and is suffering from multiple organ failure . News broke last week that his health had recently worsened . Sharon is a highly decorated -- if controversial -- Israeli military figure who became prime minister in 2001 . He became comatose in 2006 , when he suffered a major stroke that led doctors to put him under anesthesia and on a respirator . His term as prime minister came to an end . Rising through military ranks . Born in 1928 in Kfar Malal -- a community that would later become part of Israel -- Sharon graduated from high school in 1945 and began working with the Haganah , a militant group advocating for Israel 's independence . He began his rise through the Israeli military ranks in 1953 . Sharon helped establish an elite commando unit and was eventually promoted to be an army major general . He held this rank during 1967 's Six Day War , which ended with Israel controversially expanding its territory . Sharon went on to play major roles in subsequent Israeli military conflicts as well , including as head of the army 's Armored Reserve Division during the 1973 Yom Kippur War . He then began transitioning into government roles that included stints as Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin 's military adviser , agriculture minister and defense minister from 1981 to 1983 . Invasion of Lebanon . Sharon also orchestrated Israel 's invasion of Lebanon , an effort aimed at Palestine Liberation Organization ( PLO ) fighters that also left thousands of civilians dead and led many in the Arab world to call him the `` Butcher of Beirut . '' An official Israeli inquiry found Sharon indirectly responsible for the September 1982 killings of as many as 2,000 Palestinians at the Sabra and Shatila refugee camps outside of Beirut , Lebanon . The report -- which led to Sharon 's prompt resignation -- determined that the then-defense minister had done nothing to stop Christian militiamen allied with Israel from entering the camps , despite fears they might seek to avenge the killing of their leader the previous day . Sharon did not stay out of the spotlight for long . His adviser Ranaan Gissin said Sharon `` felt betrayed by his government . '' Sharon also sued Time for $ 50 million over a magazine article implying that he had foreknowledge of and played a greater role in the massacre . A New York jury in 1985 agreed that the article was negligent and defamatory , but ultimately ruled in the U.S.-based publisher 's favor , finding no evidence of actual malice or reckless disregard for the truth . Becoming prime minister . Sharon held several other Cabinet posts between 1984 and 2001 , when he won a special election to become prime minister . By then , as head of the Likud party , Sharon was considered a hawk . And early on , he took the offensive by sending tanks and troops into Palestinian territory and ordering the assassination of militant leaders . But Sharon also took steps toward peace , such as agreeing with the PLO 's then-leader , Yasser Arafat , on a timeline to halt Israeli-Palestinian violence and resume peace talks . But that effort was undermined by Sharon 's own party , which backed a resolution to never allow the creation of a Palestinian state . Sharon later participated in talks with regional and world powers to discuss a `` road map '' for Middle East peace . A significant moment for Sharon was his decision to turn over Gaza and portions of the West Bank to Palestinian control . While he had previously encouraged Israelis to establish settlements on occupied Palestinian land , Sharon pushed for Israel 's historic withdrawal , or disengagement , from 25 settlements in the West Bank and Gaza . The reaction in his own right-wing Likud Party to his order to the military to drag Israeli settlers from their homes in Gaza led Sharon in November 2005 to form the centrist political party Kadima , Hebrew for `` Forward . '' In grappling with the decades-long conflict between Israelis and Palestinians , Sharon said a few years before , `` I can talk and look in the eyes of the citizens of Israel and convince them to make painful compromises . '' Immediately after Sharon fell ill in early 2006 , his power was transferred to Vice Premier Ehud Olmert . Surgeons removed 20 inches of Sharon 's intestine the following month and , that April , Israel 's Cabinet formally ended his run as prime minister after declaring him permanently incapacitated . The former prime minister 's health has fluctuated since then . In January 2013 , doctors said testing on Sharon indicated some brain activity when he was shown photos of his home and heard his son 's voice . Sharon brain results not proof he 'll wake up .
The former Israeli prime minister is suffering from organ failure . Sharon has been in a coma since 2006 . Comment: