Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico walks during the European Council summit at the EU headquarters in Brussels on April 18, 2024.
Kenzo Tribouillard | Afp | Getty Images
Slovakia’s populist Prime Minister Robert Fico is in a stable but “very serious” condition after undergoing surgery following an assassination attempt, a health official said on Thursday.
“His condition has stabilized, but it is really very serious and that is why he will actually be in the intensive care unit on the premises of the general hospital, where he will be cared for by the team and all the medical team that he needs,” said Miriam Lapunikova, director of the FD Roosevelt University Hospital in Banska Bystrica, where Fico is being treated, according to a Reuters video on Thursday.
She added that Fico underwent a five-hour operation carried out by two teams of doctors. He suffered “multiple gunshot wounds, the consequences of which will impact his recovery,” she said.
Slovakian Deputy Prime Minister Tomas Taraba had also indicated that Fico was no longer in a life-threatening condition.
“Fortunately, as far as I know, the operation went well and I suspect he will survive in the end,” Taraba told BBC Newshour. “At this point the status of the operation should be that he is not in a life-threatening situation.”
CNBC has reached out to the Slovakian Ministry of Interior and Foreign Affairs.
Suspect charged
Fico, 59, was seriously injured on Wednesday after being shot multiple times following a political event in the Slovakian town of Handlova. According to his official Facebook page, he was transported by helicopter to a nearby hospital in Banska Bystrica for emergency treatment.
A suspect in the attack, who acted alone and had previously taken part in anti-government protests, has been charged, Reuters quoted Slovak Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok as saying on Thursday. He added that the person cited government policies regarding law enforcement and the media as reasons for the attack.
The minister had previously described the shooting as a “politically motivated attempt”, according to translated video footage from Sky News.
Slovakia’s President Zuzana Caputova reported in a social media update on Wednesday that police had arrested a suspect linked to the incident.
Fico was Prime Minister of Slovakia for around ten years in three mandates and led the Smer (Direction) party. He last took office after parliamentary elections in 2023 and promised in October to end military support for Ukraine and stop supporting further sanctions against Russia, Reuters reported.
His government has also proposed a controversial overhaul and state takeover of public broadcaster RTVS, as well as a highly controversial change to the country’s criminal code that would, among other things, abolish the special prosecutor’s office overseeing serious crimes.
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2024-05-16 11:50:52
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