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A surgeon in Saudi Arabia has died in a hospital operating room where he was set to perform an orthopaedic procedure, according to Saudi media.

Mahdi al-Emari suffered a heart attack and died on Friday at the Khamis Mushait Civil Hospital, reports Al-Watan Daily website.

Colleagues noticed that the doctor appeared ill and convinced him to get tested for heart problems.

It is not known if he operated on the patient after the electrocardiogram.

"When Emari was present to perform a surgery for one of his patients, we noticed signs of fatigue on him and he suffered from pains in his stomach," the head of the orthopaedic department at the hospital Dr Majid Al Shehri is quoted as saying by Al-Watan newspaper.

The doctor explained that Mr Emari initially refused to undergo a test and insisted he would perform the surgery on the patient.

But eventually, he was persuaded to get an electrocardiogram, which showed that he had had a heart attack, the hospital said.

"He died while performing his work. He is a martyr," Dr Al Shehri said, according to the Gulf News website.