Slovak PM shot and wounded following government meeting

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot and wounded in the abdomen after a government meeting on Wednesday, Slovak media reported.

A Reuters witness heard several shots fired after the meeting in Handlova northeast of the capital Bratislava. Police detained a man and security officials pushed someone into a car and drove off, the witness said.

Slovak news agency TASR quoted parliamentary vice-chairman Lubos Blaha as saying Fico had been shot and hurt. Broadcaster TA3 reported four shots were fired, one hitting Fico, 59, in the abdomen.

Emergency services said a helicopter had been sent for a 59-year-old man in Handlova after receiving information that he had been shot.

The government office could not immediately be reached for comment.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, condemned what she described as a vile attack on Fico.

Reuters