EPABerlusconi in 2021
NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 18:03
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been hospitalized in Milan. He is in the intensive care unit, said Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani.
Tajani talks about problems because of inflammation. Berlusconi is approachable, he told reporters in Brussels. According to Italian media, he has heart and breathing problems.
Berlusconi, 86, has been in fragile health for years. He was still in hospital for a few days last week for checkups. In 2020 he was repeatedly hospitalized after contracting a corona infection. The politician underwent heart surgery in 2016 and was admitted last year due to a urinary tract infection.
Minor Ruby
Berlusconi served as Prime Minister of Italy three times, most recently from 2008 to 2011, when he resigned after his position had become untenable due to various scandals. In 2010, for example, he had sex with a 17-year-old Moroccan sex worker. She became known as Ruby the Heartbreaker. He received a prison sentence, but was later acquitted on appeal.
Last year, Berlusconi caused a stir when he promised AC Monza footballers a “bus full of sex workers” if they beat AC Milan and Juventus.
Berlusconi currently sits in the Italian Senate on behalf of his Forza Italia party, which is part of the current Meloni government. He is also known as a media tycoon and one of the richest people in Italy. He owns three national television stations, a newspaper and a number of magazines.