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According to a top Slovak official, Prime Minister Robert Fico’s health is no longer in danger following an assassination attempt.

Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kalinak announced that while Fico’s condition remains serious and he is still in intensive care, he is now out of immediate danger. This reassurance came as a relief after a gunman shot Fico multiple times last week, causing global concern.

The attack occurred in Handlova, where Fico was greeting supporters after a government meeting. Following the incident, Fico underwent a five-hour surgery and a subsequent procedure at a hospital in Banska Bystrica. Kalinak stated outside the hospital that Fico’s condition is now stable, with a positive prognosis, though he will remain in the hospital for further recovery.

This incident marks the first major assassination attempt on a European political leader in over two decades. The suspect, a 71-year-old former security guard, has been charged with premeditated attempted murder. Authorities are investigating the possibility of accomplices, as Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok suggested the attacker might not have acted alone.

Prime Minister Fico, who began his fourth term in October, leads a coalition government focused on peace initiatives between Russia and Ukraine. The suspect’s discontent with the government’s Ukraine policy may have been a motive for the attack. In the wake of the shooting, political tensions have risen, prompting a temporary suspension of European Parliament election campaigning, as proposed by outgoing President Zuzana Caputova and her successor Peter Pellegrini.