The news seems to be wending its way around the world that Italy’s prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was attacked while he was leaving a political rally in Milan, Italy yesterday.  Facts are still coming in.

Initial reports were that Berlusconi had been punched.  Now though, it looks as though he was hit by what is being widely reported as being a souvenir representation of Milan’s Duomo cathedral.

The object, which was made of metal, injured Berlusconi’s face and cracked one or more teeth.  Altough it is still very early on, Berlusconi’s doctor has stated that the injuries sustained were serious.  It expected to take Berlusconi around a month to recover from his injuries.

Berlusconi’s doctor stated too that immediately after the incident Berlusconi showed concern for the person who assaulted him, as well as signalling to his supporters that he was OK.

Berlusconi’s aggressor was a 42 year old man, Massimo Tartaglia, who, it is understood, has a history of mental health problems.  In addition to the souvenir Tartaglia threw at Berlusconi, Tartaglia apparently had another in his pocket and a container of pepper spray.

Reports state that Tartaglia would have been lynched had he not been taken from the scene by police and bodyguards.  The analysis has now started, even if many of the facts are by no means clear just yet.

Threat to Democracy

Sunday evening’s television was full of news of the affair.  While initial indications are that the assault may well have been the act of someone who is mentally imbalanced, this has not stopped many of Italy’s politicians from coming up with grandiose phrases concerning threats to democracy in Italy.  The word ‘terrorism’ has been employed too by Berlusconi supporter Umberto Bossi.

Spiral of Violence

Both yesterday and today other protests against the Berlusconi government were being held, and Italy’s president Napolitano seems to be concerned that a ‘spiral of violence‘ needs to be halted.

Additionally, Berlusconi has been facing bad publicity over what some are viewing as attempts to avoid court cases.

Suggestions coming from a mafia turncoat in court case concerning a close associate of Berlusconi associate that Berlusconi may have mafia connections may well have compounded negative feelings towards Italy’s current prime minister.

Last week a ‘No-Berlusconi day‘ was held in Italy and a substantial number of people attended a rally in Rome.

There does seem to be quite a wall of bad feeling facing Silvio Berlusconi at the moment.

Was the Sunday Assault Premeditated?

One of the questions being asked is whether the assault was premeditated, however, it is being stated at the moment that Berlusconi’s aggressor, Tartaglia, acted alone, and he was not known to police.  Nor did he belong to any anti-Berlusconi group.  However, nothing is too clear yet.

The father of  Massimo Tartaglia called Silvio Berlusconi to apologise for his son’s actions – according to press reports.  Tartaglia’s father is a company owner, and he stated that his son’s action was the result of the negative climate in Italy at the moment.  Massimo Tartaglia  invented a number of art installations which were mentioned in newspapers around 15 years ago.

Massimo Tartaglia, Berlusconi’s attacker is still being interviewed by police.

I’ll update this post if anything more concrete comes to light.

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• Silvio Berlusconi covered in blood after attack (telegraph.co.uk)

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