Jermaine Jackson has spoken to the media just yards away from where his brother Michael died on Thursday afternoon.
The singer held a brief news conference in the auditorium of the UCLA Medical Center just minutes ago, and started by telling the journalists and photographers present, "This is hard."
Sighing deeply, he said, "My brother, the legendary King of Pop, passed away on Thursday, June 25, 2009, at 2:26 p.m... It is believed he passed away of cardiac arrest."
Jackson confirmed reports that his brother's personal physician, Dr. Tohme Tohme, was among those who tried to resuscitate the pop superstar when he suffered a cardiac arrest at his home in Holmby Hills, California, and stopped breathing, and he told reporters that staff at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles, where the singer was taken, did all they could to keep the pop star alive.
He explained, "A team of doctors, including emergency physicians and a cardiologist, worked to resuscitate him for a period of more than one hour but were unsuccessful."
Jermaine concluded the press conference with, "May Allah be with you, Michael, always."
Jackson's body has been transferred from the hospital to the coroner's office in Downtown Los Angeles by helicopter. An autopsy will be performed on Friday.
