Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who was hospitalized in Milan's San Raffaele hospital to undergo scheduled follow-up tests for a blood condition last week, has died aged 86, the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported on Monday
ROME (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 12th June, 2023) Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who was hospitalized in Milan's San Raffaele hospital to undergo scheduled follow-up tests for a blood condition last week, has died aged 86, the Corriere della Sera newspaper reported on Monday.
Berlusconi's hospitalization that took place on June 9 was not associated with any "critical" phenomena and his health status was not worrying, the report said.
However, during a previous hospitalization in April, Berlusconi's doctors first announced that he was suffering from chronic leukemia and several complications of the disease in recent years.
Berlusconi's center-right Forza Italia (Forward Italy) party confirmed his passing on social media with a posting that read "We wish we would never have to let you go. Goodbye, President."
The veteran politician's body was taken to his Villa San Martino (Arcore) on the outskirts of Milan where his close ones will attend a private farewell ceremony, RaiNews24 news channel reported. It showed dozens of Italians thronging the entrance to the villa.
Milan Cathedral is expected to hold the funeral mass for Berlusconi on Wednesday, which will be preceded by a public farewell ceremony hosted by the head office of Mediaset, the largest national broadcaster founded by Berlusconi.
Despite health problems, Berlusconi continued to lead his Forza Italia party, which he founded in 1994, until his death.
Being the party's president, he won parliamentary elections and became Italy's prime minister in 1994. He also served as the head of the country's government from 2001 to 2006 and from 2008 to 2011.
In November 2011, Berlusconi resigned amid a debt crisis in the country, as well as a series of scandals and corruption allegations. In 2013, an Italian court banned the politician from holding public office following tax fraud conviction. In 2018, after a few years of community service, the court ruled that Berlusconi could hold public office again, as the ban expired.
In 2019, Berlusconi won a seat in the European Parliament, where he previously served from 1999 to 2001.
In September 2022, the former Italian prime minister also returned to the Italian parliament after winning a seat in the country's upper house.
