Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico shot multiple times in politically motivated attack, recuperating in hospital.

The Eagle News Service:

Robert Fico, Prime Minister of Slovakia was shot five times in an assassination attempt on Wednesday that shocked the country. He was rushed to hospital in critical condition soon after the attack.

The attack took place after an off-site government meeting in the central Slovak town of Handlova. The suspected gunman was among a small crowd of people waiting to greet the prime minister on the street outside the cultural center, where the meeting took place.

CCTV footage from the scene shows the accused gunman approaching Fico and firing at him from close range across a security barrier.

According to official sources, the PM was taken to a local hospital and then transferred by helicopter to a major trauma center about 20 miles (30 kilometers) away in Banska Bystrica. No one else was injured in the attack.

Defense Minister Robert Kaliňák and Interior Minister Matúš Šutaj Eštok of Slovakia called the shooting politically motivated.

Deputy Prime Minister of Slovakia, Tomáš Taraba said he believed the prime minister would survive following surgery that went well and was not in a life-threatening situation at this moment.

The official statement posted on Fico’s official Facebook said the PM was taken to Banska Bystrica instead of the capital city of Bratislava because an acute intervention was necessary. Handlova is about two hours’ drive from the capital Bratislava.

Slovakia President Zuzana Čaputová said the suspected gunman was detained by the police. She said law enforcement agencies will release more information when they can and asked the public not to spread unconfirmed rumors.