Ex-French President Chirac leaves hospital after pacemaker surgery

Jacques Chirac's office says the former French president has left a Paris hospital after having a heart pacemaker fitted.

Chirac's office said he returned home on Saturday after a two-night stay at Pitie-Salpetriere hospital, saying the operation went "perfectly."

Doctors have recommended that the 75-year-old lighten his schedule for the next two to three weeks. As a result, he has put off a planned trip to China originally set to begin this week.

Chirac was France's president from 1995 to 2007. He did not seek re-election in the last campaign and was succeeded by fellow conservative Nicolas Sarkozy.

Chirac was hospitalized for a week in 2005 for a vascular problem. Officials have never fully explained what was wrong.