Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico Survives Assassination Attempt
Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico was rushed to a hospital after an assassination attempt by an unidentified gunman on Wednesday. Fico, 59, was hit in the stomach after four shots were fired at him in front of the local House of Culture while he was meeting with supporters.
The suspect has been taken into custody. According to a post on Fico’s Facebook profile, his condition remains critical. He is being transported by helicopter to the Banská Bystrica University Hospital, 29 kilometers (63 miles) away from Handlova, because it would take too long to get to Bratislava due to the necessity of an acute procedure.
“The next few hours will decide,” the post said.
Who is Robert Fico?
Robert Fico, a 59-year-old lawyer, has served as Prime Minister of Slovakia three times: from 2006 to 2010, 2012 to 2018, and most recently from 2020 until his resignation in 2022.
Fico’s political career has been marked by both controversy and success. He has been accused of corruption and authoritarianism, but he remains a popular figure among some Slovak voters.
In 2018, Fico resigned as Prime Minister after the murder of journalist Jan Kuciak, who was investigating high-level corruption. The journalist’s killing sparked mass protests against graft, and Fico was forced to step down.
After five years in opposition, Fico’s party won parliamentary elections last year on a pro-Russian and anti-American platform. He has vowed to bring an end to Slovakia providing Ukraine with military support as it battles Russia’s full-scale invasion, and has argued that NATO and the United States provoked Moscow into war.
The motive for the assassination attempt on Fico is not yet known. The suspect is in custody, and the investigation is ongoing.
