Petraeus passes out briefly at hearing (video)

Gen. David H. Petraeus, the commander of U.S. forces in the Middle East, fell ill at the witness table during a Senate hearing Tuesday and had to be escorted from the room.

Petraeus was listening to Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) express concern about the direction of the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan when he appeared to faint. Aides immediately rushed to help him, and he was led out of the hearing room.

A few minutes later, Sen. Carl M Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Petraeus "appears to be doing very much better." Levin said he would decide shortly whether to continue the hearing.

Before he fainted, Petraeus had testified that U.S. and Afghan forces in Afghanistan were making progress in their fight against the Taliban insurgency.