Attacker Breaks Berlusconi's Nose

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi was rushed to the hospital Sunday evening with a fractured nose and bloodied lip after a man threw a statuette at the premier's face from close range at the end of a political rally.

Mr. Berlusconi had been shaking hands with supporters in a dense crowd when a man wielding a statuette broke through the crush of people and assaulted the premier. Mr. Berlusconi's bodyguards hustled the premier into the back of a car while police detained the attacker, identified as 42-year-old Massimo Tartaglia. Police said Mr. Tartaglia didn't have a criminal record.

Mr. Berlusconi, 73, will remain in charge of Italy's government while he is in the hospital.

A billionaire media mogul with a penchant for making controversial public statements, he has long been one of the most polarizing figures in Europe's political landscape. Sunday's attack, however, shows how tensions in Italy are running higher than ever.

"This hurts the country," said Paolo Bonaiuti, a spokesman for Mr. Berlusconi's conservative government. "What worries us is the climate of violence."

Support for Mr. Berlusconi remains strong among many Italian voters. However, swaths of the Italian public have become increasingly angry with the premier during the past year. Mr. Berlusconi's personal life has undergone heavy scrutiny since last spring, when his wife announced she wanted a divorce. More recently, Mr. Berlusconi has made repeated calls for deep changes to Italy's constitution and judicial system after Italy's Constitutional Court struck down a law shielding sitting prime ministers and other top officials from criminal prosecution.

Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa, who was standing near Mr. Berlusconi when he was assaulted, told an interviewer on television that the attack stemmed from "all the tension we've seen in this period," adding: "For months there has been a campaign of hatred against Berlusconi."

The Vatican spokesman, Rev. Federico Lombardi, called the attack "a serious and worrying act that shows the real risk of violent words turning into violent acts."

The incident took place moments after Mr. Berlusconi addressed a political rally in Milan, which was open to the public.

Among the crowd was a group of protesters who repeatedly shouted at him during his speech. Mr. Berlusconi had interrupted his speech to challenge the protesters, booming: "We must oppose you, because you want to transform Italy into a screaming piazza."

"Shame on you! Shame on you! Shame on you," Mr. Berlusconi yelled, pointing at the protesters.

After his speech, Mr. Berlusconi made his way through the crowd, greeting supporters along the way. Police said Mr. Tartaglia attacked the premier with a souvenir sculpture of Milan's spire-laden cathedral. It is unclear how the assailant got close enough to strike him.

Doctors attending to Mr. Berlusconi planned to keep him in the hospital under observation, Mr. Bonaiuti said. He said the premier had suffered a cut to his lip and damage to two teeth, as well as a fracture along the bridge of his nose. Images of the premier with a swollen, blood-smudged face were splashed across Italian television.

The attack is likely to fuel debate in a country already divided over Mr. Berlusconi's leadership.

Last week, he delivered a speech at a meeting of European Union leaders, calling for changes in the Italian Constitution. The speech drew immediate protest across Italy. He also lashed out at Italy's President Giorgio Napolitano, a respected figure who is considered the guardian of the constitution.

Mr. Napolitano condemned Sunday's attack as a "grave and rash act of aggression."

"Political and institutional conflict must remain inside the limits of responsible self-control and civil dialogue," Mr. Napolitano said.

Source: The Wall Street Journal | by: Stacy Meichtry | Wed | 12/14/2009

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