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Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico Still in Serious Condition, Officials Say

Pedestrians walk at the main square near the House of Culture (L) in Handlova, Slovakia, on May 18, 2024, where Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico had been shot "multiple times" on May 15. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk at the main square near the House of Culture (L) in Handlova, Slovakia, on May 18, 2024, where Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico had been shot "multiple times" on May 15. (AFP)
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Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico Still in Serious Condition, Officials Say

Pedestrians walk at the main square near the House of Culture (L) in Handlova, Slovakia, on May 18, 2024, where Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico had been shot "multiple times" on May 15. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk at the main square near the House of Culture (L) in Handlova, Slovakia, on May 18, 2024, where Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico had been shot "multiple times" on May 15. (AFP)

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico remains in serious condition and still faces risks of complications but has stabilized, officials said on Saturday, following Wednesday's assassination attempt.

The prime minister, 59, was shot at five times at point-blank range in an attack that sent shockwaves through Europe and raised concerns over the polarized state of politics in Slovakia, a central European country of 5.4 million people.

"We have not won yet, that is important to say," Deputy Prime Minister Robert Kaliniak said, giving an update on Fico's condition in front of the hospital in the town of Banka Bystrica where the prime minister is being treated.

The Slovak Specialized Criminal Court ruled on Saturday that the suspect, identified by prosecutors as Juraj C., would remain in custody after being charged with attempted murder.

Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estok has said the suspected attacker, who was detained on the spot, acted alone. The suspect had previously taken part in anti-government protests, he said on Thursday.

Kalinak said there was no need to formally take over Fico's official duties while some communication with the premier was taking place.

Fico underwent a two-hour operation on Friday that improved prospects for his recovery.

"We are succeeding in gradually nearing a positive prognosis," Kalinak said.

"In the initial hours, the prognosis was very, very bad, you know that shots into the abdomen are basically fatal, in this case (the doctors) managed to overturn this state and further stabilize the condition."

Fico still faced a "big risk" of complications, Kalinak said. "The body's reaction to a shooting wound is always very serious and brings (the risk of) a number of complications, which lasts for 4-5 days, which is today and tomorrow."

He said it was unlikely Fico could be transferred to the capital, Bratislava, in coming days.

About 100 Fico supporters, some carrying flowers, gathered on Saturday outside the F.D. Roosevelt University Hospital where the premier was being treated.

Local news media say the suspect is a 71-year-old former security guard at a shopping mall and the author of three collections of poetry.

The court ruled he would remain in custody pending an investigation because of the risk of escape or criminal activity. The decision is subject to appeal.

Since returning for a fourth time as prime minister last October, Fico has shifted policy quickly in what opposition critics called a power grab. His government has scaled back support for Ukraine in its war with Russia, and is revamping the public broadcaster amid concern from critics about media freedom.

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Macron Urges 'Calm' ahead of Tense Rally for Slain Far-right Activist

French police secure the area after a bomb threat at the headquarters of France's hard-left party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) and its evacuation in Paris, France, February 18, 2026. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
French police secure the area after a bomb threat at the headquarters of France's hard-left party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) and its evacuation in Paris, France, February 18, 2026. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
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Macron Urges 'Calm' ahead of Tense Rally for Slain Far-right Activist

French police secure the area after a bomb threat at the headquarters of France's hard-left party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) and its evacuation in Paris, France, February 18, 2026. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier
French police secure the area after a bomb threat at the headquarters of France's hard-left party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) and its evacuation in Paris, France, February 18, 2026. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier

French President Emmanuel Macron appealed on Saturday for cooler heads to prevail ahead of a rally for a far-right activist whose killing, blamed on the hard left, has put the country on edge.

Macron also said his government would hold a meeting next week to discuss "violent action groups" in the wake of the fatal beating of Quentin Deranque, which has ignited tensions between the left and right ahead of the 2027 presidential vote.

The 23-year-old died from head injuries following clashes between radical left and far-right supporters on the sidelines of a demonstration against a politician from the left-wing France Unbowed (LFI) party in the southeastern city of Lyon last week.

A rally, widely publicized online by ultra-nationalist and far-right groups, is expected to be attended by 2,000 to 3,000 people, with the authorities fearing further clashes with left-wing protesters.

Speaking at a farming trade fair in Paris, Macron urged "everyone to remain" calm ahead of the rally for Deranque in Lyon, which is set to go ahead under high security later on Saturday despite Lyon's left-wing green mayor asking the state to ban it.

"In the Republic, no violence is legitimate," said Macron, who will be unable to contest next year's election after hitting the two-term limit. "There is no place for militias, no matter where they come from."

- 'Over 1,000 neo-Nazis' -

Ahead of the Lyon rally, some residents living near the march's planned route had barricaded the ground floor windows of their apartments, fearing unrest.

"At my age, I'm not going to play the tough guy. If I have to go out somewhere, I'll avoid the places where they're marching," said Lyon local Jean Echeverria, 87.

"They'll just keep fighting each other, it'll never end. Between the extreme of this and the extreme of that, it's non-stop," he added.

Two friends of Deranque's were behind the official call to march in his honor.

But according to the Deranque family's lawyer, Fabien Rajon, his parents will not take part in the rally, which they have urged to go ahead "without violence" and "without political statements".

Several ultra-right-wing groups, including Deranque's nationalist Allobroges Bourgoin faction, have nonetheless heavily publicized the march on social media.

The authorities fear that far-right and hard-left activists from elsewhere in Europe might travel to France for the event, stoking concerns of further unrest.

Jordan Bardella, the head of the anti-immigration National Rally (RN) party -- which senses its best chance ever of scoring the presidency in next year's vote -- has urged supporters not to go.

"We ask you, except in very specific and strictly supervised local situations not to attend these gatherings nor to associate the National Rally with them," he wrote in a message sent to party officials and seen by AFP.

LFI coordinator Manuel Bompard backed the Lyon mayor's call for a ban, warning on X that the march would be a "fascist demonstration" which "over 1,000 neo-Nazis from all over Europe" were expected to attend.

But Interior Minister Laurent Nunez declined to ban the rally, arguing that he had to "strike a balance between maintaining public order and freedom of expression" and pledging an "extremely large police deployment".

- 'Wound' -

Deranque's death has provoked a reaction from US President Donald Trump's administration, with state department official Sarah Rogers on Friday branding the killing "terrorism" and claiming that "violent radical leftism is on the rise".

Likewise, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Wednesday called Deranque's death "a wound for all Europe", prompting Macron to urge the far-right leader to stay out of French matters.

Six men suspected of involvement in the fatal assault have been charged over the killing, while a parliamentary assistant to a radical left-wing MP has also been charged with complicity.

A far-right collective called Nemesis, which claims to "defend Western women" from the violence allegedly wrought by immigrants, said Deranque had been at the protest in Lyon to protect its members when he was assaulted by "anti-fascist" activists.

Having urged both the far right and hard left to clean up their acts, Macron said his administration would hold a meeting next week "take stock of violent action groups which are active and have links with political parties of any description".

World

US Military Strikes Another Alleged Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing 3

A shot of a boat targeted by a US raid in the Caribbean (archive - Reuters)
A shot of a boat targeted by a US raid in the Caribbean (archive - Reuters)
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US Military Strikes Another Alleged Drug Boat in Eastern Pacific, Killing 3

A shot of a boat targeted by a US raid in the Caribbean (archive - Reuters)
A shot of a boat targeted by a US raid in the Caribbean (archive - Reuters)

The US military said Friday that it has carried out another deadly strike on a vessel accused of trafficking drugs in the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

US Southern Command said on social media that the boat “was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations.” It said the strike killed three people. A video linked to the post shows a boat floating in the water before bursting into flames.

Friday’s attack raises the death toll from the Trump administration’s strikes on alleged drug boats to at least 148 people in at least 43 attacks carried out since early September in the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean.

President Donald Trump has said the US is in “armed conflict” with cartels in Latin America and has justified the attacks as a necessary escalation to stem the flow of drugs. But his administration has offered little evidence to support its claims of killing “narcoterrorists.”

Critics have questioned the overall legality of the strikes as well as their effectiveness, in part because the fentanyl behind many fatal overdoses is typically trafficked to the US over land from Mexico.

World

Afghanistan Quake Causes No ‘Serious’ Damage, Injuries, Says Official

Afghan men prepare meals during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Afghan men prepare meals during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
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Afghanistan Quake Causes No ‘Serious’ Damage, Injuries, Says Official

Afghan men prepare meals during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan, 19 February 2026. (EPA)
Afghan men prepare meals during the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Kabul, Afghanistan, 19 February 2026. (EPA)

A 5.8-magnitude earthquake that rocked eastern Afghanistan including the capital Kabul has resulted in only minor damage and one reported injury, a disaster official told AFP on Saturday.

The quake hit on Friday just as people in the Muslim-majority country were sitting down to break their Ramadan fast.

The epicenter was near several remote villages around 130 kilometers (80 miles) northeast of Kabul, the United States Geological Survey said.

"There aren't any serious casualties or damages after yesterday's earthquake," said Mohammad Yousuf Hamad, spokesman for the National Disaster Management Authority.

He added that one person had sustained "a minor injury in Takhar", in Afghanistan's north, "and three houses had minor damage in Laghman" province.

Zilgay Talabi, a resident of Khenj district near the epicenter, said the tremor was "very strong, it went on for almost 30 seconds".

Earthquakes are common in Afghanistan, particularly along the Hindu Kush mountain range, near where the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates meet.

In August last year, a shallow 6.0-magnitude quake in the country's east wiped out mountainside villages and killed more than 2,200 people.

Weeks later, a 6.3-magnitude quake in northern Afghanistan killed 27 people.

Large tremors in western Herat, near the Iranian border, in 2023, and in Nangarhar province in 2022, killed hundreds and destroyed thousands of homes.

Many homes in the predominantly rural country, which has been devastated by decades of war, are shoddily built.

Poor communication networks and infrastructure in mountainous Afghanistan have hampered disaster responses in the past, preventing authorities from reaching far-flung villages for hours or even days before they could assess the extent of the damage.