Slovakian prime minister riddled with bullets in assassination attempt

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico was riddled with bullets Wednesday in an apparent assassination attempt. Fico, the 59-year-old populist leader of the Direction-Social Democracy party — a political hybrid with both leftist and social conservative elements — is, however, expected to pull through.

Deputy Prime Minister Tomas Taraba told the BBC that Fico's surgery, which dragged on for five hours, "went well," adding, "I guess in the end he will survive."

'This assassination attempt was politically motivated and the suspect made the decision to do it shortly after the presidential election.'

A witness told Reuters that the attempted assassination took place Wednesday as Fico made his way out of a building to shake hands with a group of people in the central Slovak town of Handlova where he was chairing a government meeting. Before Fico could exchange pleasantries, gunshots rang out. Security guards carried the bloody leader away while police tackled the 71-year-old suspect to the ground.

Fico was reportedly shot a total of five times. According to Taraba, one bullet tore through the prime minister's stomach and another hit a joint.

According Slovak news, the suspect charged in the shooting is Juraj Cintula, a liberal activist and former shopping mall security guard who fancies himself a poet. The suspect's son said, "I have absolutely no idea what my father intended, what he planned, what happened."

Cintula allegedly told police that he had planned the attack days prior but did not intend to kill Fico, reported Politico.

While Fico is set to survive, it is unclear how the country of 5.4 million will fare. After all, the prime minister's allies appear to suspect the hit was politically motivated.

Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok insinuated a connection between the shooting and the presidential election last month where Fico's ally, Peter Pellegrini, secured 53% of the vote, beating former Foreign Minister and Fico critic Ivan Korcok.

Korcok has been highly critical of Pellegrini and Fico's stance on Ukraine.

Upon taking office once again in October, Fico immediately drew the ire of the European nation's NATO allies and centrists at home by fulfilling his central campaign promise to halt all military aid to Ukraine while maintaining "comprehensive" nonmilitary aid to the beleaguered nation. Fico also ruffled feathers by underscoring his opposition to the possibility of Ukraine's membership in NATO as well as sanctions against Russia.

'I am horrified by where the hatred towards another political opinion can lead.'

After Pellegrini's election, Fico reportedly expressed concern that progressive voters' dehumanization of their political foes and their mounting frustration, "amplified by the newspapers, the media or the news, will translate into the murder" of a government leader.

"This assassination attempt was politically motivated and the suspect made the decision to do it shortly after the presidential election," said Eštok.

Pellegrini joined outgoing Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová in condemning the attack Thursday and calling for cooler heads to prevail, reported DPA International.

"Let's get out of the vicious circle of hatred and mutual accusation," said Čaputová, who further suggested the shooting amount to an attack on democracy.

Pellegrini wrote on X, "An assassination attempt on the Prime Minister is a threat to everything that has adorned Slovak democracy so far."

"I am horrified by where the hatred towards another political opinion can lead. We don't have to agree on everything, but there are plenty of ways to express our disagreement democratically and legally," continued the incoming Slovak president. "An assassination attempt on one of the highest constitutional officials is an unprecedented threat to Slovak democracy. If we express different political opinions with guns in the squares, and not in polling stations, we endanger everything we have built together in 31 years of Slovak sovereignty."

President Joe Biden stated Wednesday, "We condemn this horrific act of violence. Our embassy is in close touch with the government of Slovakia and ready to assist."

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg wrote, "Shocked and appalled by the shooting of Prime Minister Robert Fico. I wish him strength for a speedy recovery."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky similarly condemned the attack, noting that "every effort should be made to ensure that violence does not become the norm in any country, form, or sphere."

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