Berlusconi urged to apologize

ROME, Oct. 9 (UPI) -- Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi should apologize for a remark he made to a female politician on a late-night talk show, opponents say.

During an appearance on the show Porta a Porta, Berlusconi, 73, questioned the intelligence of Democratic Party politician Rosy Bindi, The Times of London reported Friday.

"I recognize you are increasingly more beautiful than you are intelligent," Berlusconi said after Bindi interrupted him.

"I am not one of the women at your disposal, Prime Minister," Bindi, 58, retorted.

Dario Franceschini, leader of the opposition Democratic Party, is demanding that Berlusconi apologize for what Franceschini called "rude and vulgar insults."

Berlusconi's television appearance came after Italy's highest court on Wednesday stripped him of immunity from prosecution while in office, reactivating a series of criminal cases.