Berlusconi aides seeking pardons
Top Silvio Berlusconi aides are manoeuvring to win a presidential pardon so the ex-premier can avoid a prison term and ban on holding office, with one loyalist warning of possible “civil war” unless punishment for his tax-fraud conviction is lifted.
Renato Brunetta, a leader of Berlusconi’s People of Freedom party, said he and another aide requested a meeting with Italy’s president, who can issue pardons.
