U.S. diplomat Richard Holbrooke was in critical condition at George Washington University Hospital in Washington on Saturday after undergoing surgery to repair a tear in his aorta, a State Department spokesman said.

Holbrooke, the Obama administration's special representative for Pakistan and Afghanistan, fell ill Friday morning during a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and walked down to the department's medical unit, a senior State Department official said. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital, the official said.

After doctors completed surgery on his aorta Saturday morning, Holbrooke was joined by his family, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said.

Holbrooke is a career diplomat best known for brokering the peace agreement between Bosnian factions in 1995 that became the Dayton accords.