Slovak PM Fico in ‘life-threatening condition’ after being shot

An update was just posted on Robert Fico’s Facebook page.

It says the Slovak PM was “shot multiple times and is currently in a life-threatening condition” and that he is being transported by helicopter to the nearby town of Banská Bystrica.

Mr. Fico was shot in front of a cultural community center in the town of Handlova, where a government meeting had been held, reports say.

Several shots were heard, according to journalists on the scene.

Police detained the alleged assailant.

Handlova is around 180km (112 miles) northeast of the capital Bratislava.

A video showed several men rushing to detain the suspect just outside the cultural center in Handlova. The BBC has not yet verified the footage.

In her initial reaction to the shooting, Slovakia’s outgoing president Zuzana Caputova said she was shocked by the “brutal and ruthless” attack on the prime minister and wished him strength to recover.

Mr Fico returned to power in Slovakia after elections last September, at the head of a populist-nationalist coalition.