Daily news summary

Greek court cuts suspended terms for Czechs who photographed army facilities

An appeals court in Greece has reduced the suspended sentences handed down to two Czechs for photographing military facilities in the country, Mladá fronta Dnes reported on Thursday. Martin Pezlar and Ivan Buchta were previously given terms of two and a half years suspended for three years. Now they are facing one and a half year terms, also suspended for three years.

Mr. Pezlar and Mr. Buchta were arrested on the Greek island of Limnos in 2012. They were reported to have taken photos at a military site near the Turkish border to use in creating a computer game.

Tennis star Petra Kvitová’s attacker reportedly arrested

Police have reportedly arrested a man suspected of attacking tennis star Petra Kvitová in December 2016, Czech television reported on Wednesday. Police have confirmed that the case had been reopened a few months ago but didn’t provide any further details on grounds that it could threaten the ongoing proceedings.

Kvitová was attacked in her home in Prostějov, sustaining severe injuries to her left hand as she grappled with her attacker. After undergoing surgery and rehabilitation she made her comeback at the French Open last year.

The investigation into the attack was shelved in November last year due to lack of evidence.

Demolition recommended for well-known Prague rail bridge

A well-known Prague railway bridge is in line for demolition, the newspaper Mladá fronta Dnes reported on Thursday. The steel bridge between the city’s Výtoň and Smíchov districts is in such a poor state that it cannot be repaired, according to a study commissioned by the Railway Infrastructure Administration.

The bridge, which first went into operation in 1872, is a protected structure and may eventually be replaced by a copy, Mladá fronta Dnes said.

Government weighs up higher bonuses for nurses

The government is considering increasing nurses’ bonuses for working shifts, Czech Television reported. At present nurses get between CZK 2000 and CZK 3000 a month for doing such work, but that could rise to CZK 7000 under proposals put forward on Thursday by the acting prime minister, Andrej Babiš, and health minister, Adam Vojtěch.

At the beginning of May cabinet members promised a pay rise of 10 percent for medical workers from next year.

Around 3000 nursing positions are at present unfilled in the Czech Republic. Roughly half that number of nurses have left the profession since 2010, Czech Television said.

Pirate MP uses power in official apartment to generate cryptocurrency

Tomáš Vymazal used the power in the apartment he receives as a Pirate Party MP to generate cryptocurrency, the news site Aktualne.cz reported. Mr. Vymazal’s activities were given away by a major rise in electricity consumption at the flat. The lower house deputy, who is 28, said his powerful computers had helped to heat up the cold property on Nerudova St.

However, Mr. Vymazal also apologised and promised to give the money he had earned from generating the cryptocurrency Zcash to charity.

Journalism prize goes to presidential debate chair Witowská

The Karel Havlíček Borovský Prize for journalism has gone to Světlana Witowská of public broadcaster Czech Television. The jury praised her ability to conduct interviews with perspective, thoroughness and elegance.

Ms. Witowská won plaudits for her handling of the final TV debate between presidential candidates Miloš Zeman and Jiří Drahoš in January, which was watched by around a quarter of the population.

Weather forecast

It should be bright with the chance of storms in the Czech Republic on Friday, with temperatures of up to 25 degrees Celsius expected. Daytime highs are then due to climb to the high 20s Celsius at the start of next week.