Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who overcame sex scandals and accusations of corruption, passed away at the age of 86.
Italian media reported that he passed away at the San Raffaele Hospital in Milan.
Berlusconi underwent treatment for a lung infection in April that was connected to a previously unreported case of chronic leukemia.
Until 2011, Berlusconi, a flamboyant billionaire media magnate, presided over four governments.
After the September elections, when he was elected to Italy’s upper house, the Senate, he served as the leader of the center-right Forza Italia party, which formed a coalition government with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
Reacting to the news, Italy’s Defence Minister Guido Crosetto said Berlusconi’s death left a “huge void”.
“An era is over… Farewell Silvio,” Mr Crosetto wrote in a tweet, adding that he “loved” Berlusconi “very much”.
