Spain Prime Minister Punched in Face

Photo: EPA

Spain's prime minister Mariano Rajoy punched in face on campaign trail - Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Thursday tweeted a video of himself working out in a gym a day after he was punched in the face while campaigning for Sunday's general election.

“Happy Thursday from Barcelona. We continue heading forward,” Rajoy, 60, said in a tweet accompanying the 12-second video.

The prime minister was struck by a 17-year-old resident of Pontevedra while he walked among a crowd in the town on Wednesday evening.

He later said he was "fine .... Let's carry on constructing a serious Spain."

In a brief video of the incident, his glasses were knocked off and he appears to fall toward the ground. His face suffered what appeared to be a large bruise.

The assailant, identified only by his initials A.V.F., was immediately detained by police and it was not immediately clear what his motivations were.

The attack took place in Galicia, which is Rajoy's home region.

In a separate tweet on Thursday, Rajoy said he refused to draw any political conclusions from the incident.

Rajoy’s Popular Party is projected to win the most parliamentary seats in Sunday's election but its popularity has waned amid years of austerity cuts and tax hikes.