Grandson of Spain's king shoots self in foot

MADRID - A teenaged grandson of Spain's King Juan Carlos shot himself in the foot accidentally with a rifle while doing target practice outside a family home north of Madrid, the royal palace told Reuters by telephone on Tuesday.

Felipe Juan Froilan, the 13-year-old son of the king's eldest daughter Infanta Elena, was with his father, Jaime de Marichalar, on Monday evening on the patio of a house in the town of Soria, when he misfired a shot at his right foot.

"He has suffered a minor accident," said a spokesman, reading from a short statement.

Felipe, the king's eldest grandchild, was treated at Santa Barbara Hospital in Soria before being transferred to the Quiron clinic in the capital for further treatment, the palace added.

Conservative newspaper ABC said Felipe was walking with the rifle pointing at the ground when it went off.

The incident was reminiscent of a more serious royal shooting accident in 1956 when King Juan Carlos's 14-year-old brother, Alfonso, was shot dead at the royal family's home.

While the palace at that time said a revolver that Alfonso was cleaning went off, and he received a shot to the head, historians have questioned the official version.

(Reporting by Sarah Morris; editing by Patrick Graham)

Source: Reuters