Video of the aftermath of the shooting of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico as well as the gunman giving his reason for trying to kill the PM is below.
The 71-year-old shooter and former security guard, identified as Juraj Cintula, said he wanted to kill the prime minister because he disagreed with his government’s policies.
A separate footage captured Cintula, who is a poet and a left-wing activist, participating in a pro-Ukraine rally where demonstrators chanted “Long live Ukraine,” “Traitors,” and “Enough Fico.”
Another clip showed the arrest of Juraj Cintula’s wife, who was reported to be a Ukrainian refugee.
On Robert Fico’s health condition now, the Slovak Prime Minister was operated on and is recovering and was said to be able to speak, but still in a “very serious” condition.
Fico was shot in Horlivka five times at close range in his arm and stomach.
The tense political state of the nation prompted Interior Minister Matus Estok to say that Slovakia was “on the edge of a civil war”. According to him, the PM’s shooting was politically motivated.
However, Slovakian President Zuzana Caputova in a statement said: “Hateful rhetoric, which we see in society, leads to hateful actions. Please stop it.”
Demeaning PM Robert Fico, Caputova said; “His security people underestimated the situation, because he is not only popular. He is the second most unpopular politician as well,” said Hvorecky. “His voters love him, they trust him … but the other half really hates him.”
