JERUSALEM, May 31: Israel’s former prime minister Ariel Sharon, locked in a coma since early January, opened his eyes while being transferred to a long-term care facility at the weekend, a report said on Wednesday.

The 78-year-old opened his eyes for an extended period on more than one occasion in the ambulance as he was moved from Jerusalem’s Hadassah hospital and once he reached the Sheba rehabilitation centre in Tel Aviv, according to the Yediot Aharonot daily.

However, once opened, his eyes showed no other signs of movement or awareness.

The newspaper said that doctors did not know if it was a simple reflex action on behalf of Sharon or a sign of a slight improvement in his condition.

Sharon suffered a massive brain haemorrhage on January 4 after which he was induced by doctors into a coma from which he has yet to emerge.—AFP