Italian police officer describes how he was injured in bear attack

Diego Balasso says 121kg animal began to smell him then threw him to the ground

A young, male bear has injured a police officer in northern Italy, pouncing on the man and knocking him to the ground in what witnesses described as an unprovoked attack.

The incident took place near a lake, just outside the city of Andalo in the Trentino region, where the carabinieri officer, Diego Balasso, 24, was walking with a friend on Saturday.