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Rupert Murdoch Attacked at Parliament, Wife Wendi Jumps to His Defense

Wendi Deng to the rescue!

News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch‘s British Parliament hearing was cut short Tuesday when a man tried to attack him with what appeared to be shaving cream.

Related: PHOTOS: Britain's most prominent stars

The media mogul and his son, James Murdoch, were in the midst of answering questions related to the wiretapping scandal that forced him to recently shut down Britain’s 168-year-old newspaper, News of the World. (It’s estimated there are around 4,000 victims of the phone hacking scandal, including high-profile stars like Prince William, Prince Harry, Heather Mills, Hugh Grant, Jude Law and Sienna Miller.)

Rupert Murdoch Attacked at Parliament, Wife Wendi Jumps to His Defense
Rupert Murdoch and wife Wendi Deng arrive at the 83rd Annual Academy Awards at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California on February 27, 2011. Andrew Gombert/EPA/Shutterstock

The crowd gasped as James, 38 — who was sitting next to his father at the witness table — leaped to his father’s defense. Deng — who has been married to Rupert since 1999 — jumped out of her seat and slapped the protestor. Covered in white foam, the unidentified attacker was handcuffed by police and escorted out of the committee room.

The disruption occurred during the final round of questions. According to CNN, the offender approached Rupert and accused him of being “a greedy billionaire.”

PHOTOS: Today’s top news pics

Both Rupert and James seemed uncomfortable throughout the hours-long hearing. “This is the most humble day of my life,” Rupert told the committee. Asked later if he would resign, Rupert said no, adding that he was “the best person to clean this up.”

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