Rageh Omaar: ITV host receiving medical care after becoming unwell live on air

ITV News presenter Rageh Omaar is receiving medical care after becoming "unwell" live on air, ITV has said.

Omaar, 56, was presenting the channel's News at Ten programme on Friday when he appeared to be struggling to read the bulletins.

The incident sparked widespread concern on social media.

Omaar serves as international affairs editor at ITV News and was formerly a foreign correspondent for the BBC.

"We are aware that viewers are concerned about Rageh Omaar's wellbeing," an ITV News spokesperson said.

"Rageh became unwell while presenting News at Ten on Friday and is now receiving medical care.

"He thanks everyone for their well wishes."

No further details of Omaar's condition or what happened to him during the broadcast have been released.

However, ITV pulled the programme from its scheduled re-runs on ITV+1, with a message instead telling viewers that ITV was "temporarily unable to bring you our +1 service".

"We will resume shortly," it read.

Omaar's colleague Marverine Cole, a newsreader for ITV's Good Morning Britain, said she wished Omaar "all the very best" in a message on X, formerly known as Twitter. Channel 4 journalist Ayshah Tull also took to X to wish Omaar "a speedy recovery."

Ashna Hurynag, a correspondent for Sky News, wrote on X to wish "the absolute legend... a full and speedy recovery."

Some viewers expressed concern that Omaar continued to read the autocue throughout the bulletin, despite appearing to be struggling to speak.

TV journalist India Willoughby wrote on X: "Worrying to see what happened - but unfair to blame those in the @itvnews gallery for carrying on. It's live tv, maybe only 2 people in the gallery on a Fri eve. Sure they will have asked if ok. Get well soon Rageh Omaar!"

Omaar first rose to prominence covering the war in Iraq for the BBC in 2003. He began his journalistic career in 1990 as a trainee at The Voice newspaper in Brixton, south London.

In 1991, he moved to Ethiopia where he freelanced as a foreign correspondent, with much of his work broadcast by BBC World Service. Omaar first became a BBC correspondent in 1997, when he was posted to Amman in Jordan.

He now covers major news stories across the world for ITV News and also presents current affairs programme On Assignment.

Born in Mogadishu, Somalia, in 1967, Omaar is the youngest of four children.

He was educated at Cheltenham College and went on to study modern history at Oxford University.