Former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet is today fighting for his life at a military hospital after suffering a heart attack.
Doctors say he is improving, however, after an emergency angioplasty to restore blood flow to his heart.
The heart attack came one week after Gen Pinochet took "full political responsibility" for the actions of his 1973-90 dictatorship, which carried out thousands of political killings, widespread torture and illegal detentions.
"We are now in the hands of God and of the doctors," said the 91-year-old Gen Pinochet's son, Marco Antonio. "My father is in very bad condition."
A doctor treating Gen Pinochet said he was conscious and communicating with family members and doctors, who had been able to drain a build up of fluid in his lungs.
But he said Gen. Pinochet was still in serious condition: "The next 24 to 48 hours will be critical to see whether other complications appear."
The former dictator, who was under house arrest on human rights charges, was rushed to the hospital from his suburban Santiago residence yesterday.
Gen Pinochet has been increasingly isolated since 1998, when he was arrested in London on an international warrant issued by a Spanish judge who unsuccessfully sought his extradition on human rights charges.
His faltering health has helped him avoid trial in Chile, however, with judges dismissing at least two cases in recent years saying he was unfit to stand trial. His foes say he exaggerates his health problems.