Former Italy Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has died aged 86

Silvio Berlusconi, the former Prime Minister of Italy, has died at the age of 86 after being diagnosed with leukaemia.

The billionaire media mogul led three Italian governments in his time between 1994 and 2011, which was a lengthy period at the top.

Born in 1936 in Milan, Berlusconi began out selling vacuum cleaners, before later setting up a construction company.

He was largely regarded as one of Italy's richest men, making much of his fortune through his TV channels.

Berlusconi then gained global recognition as he became the owner of one of the largest football clubs in Europe - AC Milan.

After that, he headed into the world of politics, where he ended up founding his own political party in Forza Italia.

During that time, he was in and out of power as he battled sex scandals and allegations of corruption during his time in office.

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In recent times, Berlusconi had been dealing with a lot of ill health, and was dashed to Milan's San Raffaele Hospital on 9 June.

The reason for his admission to hospital was because of apparent heart problems and shortness of breath.

It was the second times in just weeks the former Prime Minister had been hospitalised at the same hospital, after he was discharged on 19 May.

He had spent 45 days in the facility, after being diagnosed with pneumonia following a blood cancer diagnosis.

The former PM went through intensive treatment to try and battle the disease, as he spent four days in the same Milan hospital once more, according to news agency Ansa.

Ever since Berlusconi contacted Covid-19 in 2020, his health has been on a downward spiral.

In 2021, he was admitted to hospital several times for complications stemming from the virus.

Michele D'Ottavio / Alamy Stock Photo

That came after the Italian underwent open heart surgery in 2016 and surgery on his intestine just three years later.

He also beat prostate cancer during his life while also being fitted with a pacemaker.

But despite all his heath woes, Berlusconi has previously took to social media to play down fears Italians had for his well-being.

Captioning a snap of him smiling at home earlier this year, Berlusconi wrote: "I have already returned to work on the main themes of these days, ready and determined to commit myself, as I always have, to the country I love."

Topics: News, World News, Politics

Callum Jones

@CallumJ2709