- Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot in the abdomen.
- The president of Slovakia condemns the attack.
- The suspect has been arrested.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot after concluding a meeting in Handlova, the country's media reported on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Fico's condition remains unknown at the moment.
The country's news agency. TA3 reported that a suspect has been arrested.
The populist leader was reportedly wounded by several gunshots, and the 59-year-old man was hit in the abdomen.
Zuzana Čaputová, president of Slovakia, condemned the “brutal” attack on the prime minister.
“The police detained a man and the security officers pushed someone into a car and drove away,” a witness quotes Reuters saying.
Tasr Slovakia's news agency quoted parliamentary vice president Lubos Blaha as saying that Fico had been wounded by a gunshot.
Emergency services said a helicopter was sent to look for the prime minister in Handlova after receiving information.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, condemned the attack, calling it “a vile attack on Fico.”
The Slovak government met in Handlova, 190 kilometers (118 miles) northeast of Bratislava, as part of a tour of the country's regions after coming to power in 2023.
Fico became NATO prime minister and EU member for the fourth time after changing political course to appeal to a changing electorate.
Over a three-decade career, Fico moved between mainstream pro-European and nationalist positions opposed to EU and US policies.
He also expressed his hope to transform himself according to public opinion or change political realities.
After the incident, Slovakia's opposition party canceled a protest against the government's public broadcaster reforms scheduled for Wednesday night.
