Slovak PM Fico stable but in serious condition

Slovakia's Health Minister Zuzana Dolinkova, Minister of Defense Robert Kalinak and director of the F.D. Roosevelt University Hospital in Banska Bystrica Miriam Lapunikova hold a press conference outside the F.D. Roosevelt University Hospital, where Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is hospitalised following an assassination attempt, in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia, May 18, 2024. REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo

BANSKA BYSTRICA, Slovakia (Reuters) - The condition of Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has stabilised but remains serious, the country's health minister said on Saturday, following Wednesday's assassination attempt against the central European leader.

Slovakia's deputy prime minister also said the transfer of Fico to the capital Bratislava from the small-town hospital near the area where he was shot five times at point blank range would not take place in the coming days.