Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico Shot In Assassination Attempt
Photo Credit: TASR via AP via NBC News
Slovakian police have charged a man, described as a politically motivated “lone wolf,” with the attempted murder of 59-year-old Prime Minister Robert Fico, who is seriously ill in hospital following the assassination attempt.
On May 15, the prime minister was shot five times in the stomach and arm at close range as he greeted supporters in the central Slovak town of Handlova. Fico underwent surgery hours after the attack.
When the populist Fico won parliamentary elections last year, he raised fears of Slovakia abandoning its pro-Western stance. Due to his support for lifting sanctions on Russia and military assistance to Ukraine, Fico is a contentious figure in the country.
In 2018, Fico resigned along with his entire cabinet after a political crisis engulfed the nation following the contract killing of journalist Ján Kuciak. In the course of his work for the Slovak news organization Aktuality.sk, Kuciak had been investigating tax fraud amongst businessmen associated with high-ranking Slovak politicians. Fico returned to office after being elected in 2023.
Prosecutors have told the police not to publicly identify the person or details about the case. Though the assailant has not been formally named, Slovak news organizations have identified him as a 71-year-old from the town of Levice.
The suspect acted alone and had previously taken part in anti-government protests, according to Reuters. It has been said that the assassin is going to be jailed for 20 years.
In April, Fico warned of potential violence from the opposition. “They are vulgar and swear at government politicians on the street,” he claimed. “I am only waiting until this frustration [...] morphs into the murder of a leading government politician.”
The attack marked the first major assassination attempt on a European political leader for more than 20 years.
Fico is still recovering from the attack, according to Miriam Lapunikova, the director of the clinic in the central city of Banska Bystrica. However, he is no longer in a life-threatening condition.
Many Slovaks, such as Lubos Oswald, a 41-year-old councillor in Handlova, see the violence as a symptom of increasing political polarisation in the country. “It can't go on like this anymore: two neighbours hating each other for not having the same political opinions,” he told Reuters. “This is what I feel in the local council. People try to stir up emotions and hatred.”
“Let us step out of the vicious circle of hatred and mutual accusations,” said Zuzana Čaputová, the previous president and a political rival of Fico's. “What happened yesterday was an individual act. But the tense atmosphere of hatred was our collective work,” she noted.
U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin both expressed their support for Fico, whom Putin described as a “courageous and strong-minded man.” He expressed hope “that these qualities will help him to survive this difficult situation.” Biden condemned “this horrific act of violence.”