Ex-Tunisian leader Ben Ali in coma? (UPDATES)

Former Tunisian President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali is in hospital, possibly in a coma after suffering a stroke in Saudi Arabia, according to reports.

The reports follow a blog posting by French journalist Nicolas Beau, who cited Tunisian sources as saying that Ben Ali was in a critical condition in a medical facility in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

According to Radio France International, Beau said Ben Ali was admitted to the hospital Tuesday under a false name.

And Reuters reported Friday that Ben Ali was in grave condition in a Saudi hospital, quoting Saudi sources.

The claim that Ben Ali was hospitalized also was reported by webzine JSSnews, although it said the ousted ruler had suffered a heart attack, according to RFI.

Ben Ali was ruled Tunisia for 23 years before an uprising forced him to flee the country in January.

His wife Leila Trabelsi is no longer at his side, Beau writes cryptically.

Ben Ali was power in Tunisia for 23 years before a popular uprising forced him to flee the country on Jan. 14. 

His ouster sparked a wave of ongoing protest throughout the Middle East that has reached as far as Bahrain, where a bloody crackdown was reported overnight Thursday, as well as Yemen, Libya and Iran.

Tunisia's interim government, meantime, has prolonged a state of emergency imposed just before president Ben Ali was toppled a month ago as it struggled to restore stability.

The interim government led by Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi has vowed to hold Tunisia's first free elections within six months, declared full freedom of speech and adopted an amnesty law for those persecuted by the former regime.