Mamma Mia!

Burlesconi has fractured nose, broken teeth
December 14, 2009

Rome, Italy (CNN) -- Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi will remain in the hospital at least "another 36 hours," his doctor Alberto Zangrillo said Monday, following an attack that left Berlusconi with broken teeth and a fractured nose.

Berlusconi, 73, is receiving anti-biotics, anti-inflammatory medication, and painkillers, the doctor said.

The man accused of hitting controversial Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi in the face with a replica of Milan's cathedral was charged with grievous bodily harm and held overnight, Milan police said.

Massimo Tartaglia was kept in Milan's San Vittore prison, authorities said. Under Italian law, police can hold him for up to 48 hours without a judge's order.

Anti-terrorist prosecutor Armanda Spataro has been assigned to investigate the assault, police said.

The attack at a campaign rally Sunday in Milan left Berlusconi bleeding profusely from his left upper lip and cheek. The premier underwent a CAT scan at Milan's San Raffaele Hospital, and his personal physician, Alberto Sangrillon, recommended more tests be done, Berlusconi spokesman Paolo Buonaiuti told CNN.

Berlusconi is feeling well as of Monday morning, his press aide Marco Ventura told CNN. When he woke up, he asked for the newspapers, reports said.

The suspect has a history of mental illness, according to Milan police. The suspect's father said he had never committed a violent act before, Italian media reported.

Berlusconi, a conservative media mogul-turned-politician, has been dogged by allegations of corruption and is the middle of a messy divorce from his second wife. He was in Milan, his hometown and political base, to stump for a local political ally, and blamed his legal woes on his political opponents during the rally.

Milan police said Berlusconi's attacker hit him with a small, metal souvenir replica of the Doumo di Milano, the city's central cathedral, but it was not immediately clear whether the man swung at the prime minister with the object in his hand or threw it at him.

Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera that Berlusconi continued to shake hands with supporters for "a couple of minutes" after being hit.

"He remained calm and leaned out the window as he was being driven to the hospital and waved to the crowd," La Russa said.

Buonaiuti said there was "a lot of confusion" surrounding the assault, but he put some of the blame on Berlusconi's critics.