Dec
16
The incident comes at an eventful time for the electoral campaign, marked by a debate of rare ferocity on Monday, which saw the usually calm Rajoy slam his main rival Pedro Sanchez of the opposition Socialists as “a miserable wretch” when he questioned his integrity.
A young man caught the conservative politician by surprise during an event in Pontevedra, punching him hard and knocking his glasses off.
Mr Rajoy was not seriously hurt during the attack in Pontevedra in his home region of Galicia but later appeared with a red mark on his face. Video showed him being detained by security guards and then taken in handcuffs from a building, raising his hands and thumbs into the air in an apparent victory sign.
Mr Rajoy later appeared, smiling but without his glasses, at a campaign appearance in the nearby city of A Coruna.
Police did not release the name of Rajoy’s accused attacker, who is a minor, or reveal a motive, according to the Pontevedra newspaper.
Pablo Iglesias, leader of the Podemos party immediately sent a message to Rajoy enquiring about his condition, while Public Works Minister, Ana Pastor, said she “had no words to express my indignation against this aggression in which the Prime Minister has been the victim”.
General elections will be held in Spain on Sunday and, despite the poor economic situation in the country, Rajoy’s ruling People’s Party is expected to win.
Comments
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.