Ceremony at Czech Radio commemorates Prague Uprising in 1945

Political leaders, war veterans and members of the public gathered outside Czech Radio’s Prague headquarters on Tuesday to mark the 81st anniversary of the Prague Uprising against Nazi rule at the end of WWII.

The radio station was the focal point of the uprising and the site of one of the biggest clashes with Nazi forces as citizens came to defend the building. Over 100 people died in its immediate vicinity and hundreds of others fell at the barricades that went up around Prague. Altogether, an estimated 12,000 people were killed around the country.

Among those present at the ceremony at Czech Radio’s headquarters were Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Tomio Okamura, deputy chair of the Senate, Jiří Drahoš, Defense Minister Jaromír Zůna and Prague Mayor Bohuslav Svoboda.

Commemorative ceremonies marking the anniversary of the Prague Uprising have also been taking place in towns and cities around the country.