The Slovakia government says the surgery on its Prime Minister Robert Fico, who was shot at close range in an assassination attempt, was successful.
Fico’s Deputy, Tomas Taraba, disclosed this to the BBC.
He said the surgery had gone “well” and “I guess that in the end, he will survive”.
Earlier, Mr Fico, 59, was said to have been “fighting for his life” after being gravely injured in the assassination attempt in the small town of Handlova.
A suspect was detained at the scene of the shooting.
Interior Minister Matus Sutaj Estoka described it as a politically motivated assassination attempt.
The gunman fired five shots at close range, and Mr Fico was hit in the stomach and the arm.
Following the shooting, he was rushed to hospital and spent several hours in surgery “fighting for his life”, according to Defence Minister Robert Kalinak.