In the next day or two there will be more details surrounding the assassination attempt on Robert Fico will come to light if the Slovak government allows an open investigation. It has a passive role so far, which is surprising. There is definitely conflicting information.
This is what Ruslan Trad, an analyst at the US Atlantic Council and founder of the journal "De Re Militari" commented to BNR.
"What is interesting at the moment is precisely the narratives that are developing in the online space in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The two sides are often linked to each other when this type of event occurs. The shooting in Prague at the end of 2023 also affected the narrative in Slovakia.
Now we also have an example of the spread of misinformation in the first minutes after the shooting of Robert Fizzo. From the first narratives were from supporters and even members of his party, blaming the liberal position, then the media, which spread hate speech and against the reforms that Fizo intends to make in the context of media freedom," explained Trad.
And recall:
"Immediately before the attack on him, his government began introducing laws similar to those in the Russian Federation in Georgia – Law on Foreign Agents and similar in Hungary. There was an opposition protest before the assassination and it was called off immediately after the news of the shooting of Fico."
Ruslan Trad commented that Fico shifted from being pro-European to pro-Russian politics.
"He changed his ideology, he was on the left and went to the right. Above all, Fico is an opportunist and, like Orbán, there are other populist leaders in Slovenia who have appeared on the political landscape in Europe in the last decade, the prime minister of Slovakia is taking every opportunity to amass personal wealth from the political situation in his country," he commented. Ruslan Trad.
According to him, there is also a narrative about the attacker Cintula himself, as well as conflicting data.
"He is really a writer, it is specific that he has books that are racist and call for violence against the Roma in Slovakia.
"The man arrested and suspected of being the attacker, belongs to a paramilitary organization with open ties to the Russian Federation. The first reactions of media commentators were that it was possible that the man disagreed on an ideological level with Fizo. And it turned out that the attacker had pro-Russian ties, which requires another reading of the events. The connection between this author and "Slovakian brannici" is categorical. Cintula does not hide his views," said Trad.
And commented that political violence is not new in Slovakia.
"Fizzo stepped down as prime minister in 2019 following mass demonstrations, on the verge of violence, following the assassination of Jan Kuciak, who was investigating Fizzo's ties to the Italian mafia. This caused serious tremors in Slovakia. More than once, politicians have been threatened with death and assault there. The political life there is toxic, to say the least, and that's why the media informed that there may be more such events in the area," Trad predicted.