Berlusconi returns to Rome residence

Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi returned to his Rome residence yesterday, four weeks after an attack left him with a broken nose and two broken teeth.

The 73-year-old leader chatted briefly with reporters before heading into Palazzo Grazioli in central Rome.

"I'm doing well," said a smiling Mr Berlusconi, wearing heavy make-up through which a slight scar could be seen on his upper lip.

"Welcome Home, Prime Minister," read a banner set up by young party activists.

Later yesterday, Mr Berlusconi met with President Giorgio Napolitano, telling reporters afterward: "Everything's fine. We spoke about government activities in the coming months and things that need doing."

Generally frosty relations between the conservative Prime Minister and the ex-communist President have notably been strained over efforts by Mr Berlusconi to reform the justice system, seen by many as a bid to avoid prosecution in trials involving his vast media empire.

Doctors ordered Mr Berlusconi to spend at least two weeks out of the public eye following the December 13 attack in Milan's cathedral square by a man with a history of psychiatric problems, which landed the premier in hospital for four nights.

He has spent much of the intervening period in his private residence near Milan but was spotted on the French Riviera last Wednesday when he bought four bronze statuettes of nudes in the village of Saint Paul de Vence.

The assailant struck Mr Berlusconi in the face with a souvenir model of Milan's gothic cathedral.

The billionaire Prime Minister remained in hospital mainly because of difficulty eating and neck pains.