What we know about the shooting of Slovakia's PM Robert Fico

A man has been charged with attempting to murder Slovakia's prime minister Robert Fico, the interior minister has said.

Fico was rushed to hospital following the shooting on Wednesday and spent five hours in surgery before he was moved to an intensive care unit. It was initially feared he would die but doctors were able to stabilise his condition by the evening but the deputy prime minister warned on Thursday Fico is "not out of the woods yet".

Interior minister Matus Sutaj Estok said the initial investigation found there was a "clear political motivation" behind the attack.

What we know

Fico was shot outside the cultural centre in Handlova, around 118 miles from the country's capital Bratislava, at around 2.50pm local time while meeting supporters after attending a cabinet meeting.

He was immediately bundled into a vehicle, before being airlifted to hospital for treatment. Later statements said he had been shot five times, with one bullet going through his stomach.

Doctors performed a five-hour operation on Fico, according to the director of the F.D. Roosevelt Hospital in Banska Bystrica, Miriam Lapunikova. She told reporters: "At this point his condition is stabilised but is truly very serious, he will be in the intensive care unit."

Journalists and witnesses at the scene reported hearing several shots fired during the incident, before police quickly sprang into action, detaining the suspect.

Eyewitness Lubica Valkova said: “We heard something like a bang, we thought someone made a joke and threw a firecracker on the ground, that was my first reaction. I heard three shots, it was quick, one by one - like if you throw a firecracker on the ground."

Slovakian president Zuzana Čaputová said in a statement afterwards that she was "utterly shocked" by the attack.

The interior minister said on Thursday the suspect had been charged with attempted murder and that the attack was "politically motivated." He added the suspect was a "lone wolf" and did not belong to any political party but had attended anti-government protests in the past.

The attack was met with widespread condemnation from political leaders around the world with Rishi Sunak, Joe Biden, Vladimir Putin and Ursula von der Leyen all sending messages of support to Fico within hours of the shooting.

The populist left-wing prime minister has proved to be a divisive figure in Slovakian politics, after stopping military aid to Ukraine on re-taking office in October 2023, and more recently stating that "the West’s strategy towards Ukraine has completely failed".

What we don't know

Police have not yet released the name of or many details about the suspect except for what the interior minister has said.

Local media has begun tracking down details of the suspect and reported the shooter was a 71-year-old former security guard at a shopping mall, an author of three collections of poetry and a member of the Slovak Society of Writers. News outlet Aktuality.sk cited his son as saying his father was the legal holder of a gun licence. However, these details are yet to be verified.

It is not clear whether police were on high alert at the time of the shooting, nor whether Fico had received any threats in the run-up to the incident.

Fico’s family has not yet made any public statements on the shooting. We do not have a timeframe of when Fico may be released from hospital or the damage his injuries may have done to him.

Who is Robert Fico?

Who is Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico?

Having previously served twice as prime minister, from 2006 to 2010 and again from 2012 to 2018, Fico returned to power last year for a record-breaking third term — despite a plethora of controversies and scandals in recent years.

Fico has earned a reputation for his tirades against journalists, and faced criminal charges in 2022 for allegedly creating a criminal group and abuse of power.

In 2018, he and his government stepped down after the murder of Slovakian investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée. Kuciak had been reporting on tax-related crimes and connections to the Italian mafia 'Ndrangheta implicating high-level Slovak politicians, including Fico's assistant.

Read the full profile of the controversial Slovakian PM from Euro News here

How Roberto Fico turned his country into one of Russia’s only allies

Robert Fico... has presided over a shift from pro-Western values to growing sympathies with Russia since his election victory last September.

“It is better to negotiate peace for 10 years and stop military operations than to let the Ukrainians and Russians kill each other for another 10 years without results,” he said.

Traditionally a pro-Western party, Smer under Fico pivoted during the last campaign towards being softer on Vladimir Putin, with the 59-year-old calling for an end to sanctions on Russia as they were driving up the cost of living for ordinary Slovaks.

Read the full story on the Telegraph here