Daily news summary
Czechs paying homage to victims of Communism
Hundreds of people braved the cold to light candles and lay flowers at monuments to the victims of Communism on the 70th anniversary of the Communist takeover on February 25, 1948. The anniversary is being marked by debates, exhibitions and film screenings.
A gathering in support of democracy took place on Wenceslas Square at which speakers warned of the danger of giving the Communist Party even a supportive role in the country’s next government.
4,500 people were murdered during the Communist years, 374 were killed at the country’s borders in an attempt to flee to the West, 254 were sentenced to death in political show trials, thousands were persecuted by the Communist secret police and 180,000 people fled the country.
Syrian Kurdish leader arrested in Prague
Syrian Kurdish leader Saleh Muslim was arrested in Prague on Saturday on an international arrest warrant, the Turkish news agency Anadolu reported on Sunday.
Muslim was the co-chair of the PYD party, the major component of the coalition that runs autonomous parts of north Syria. He has been on Turkey’s wanted terrorist list since 2016.
Turkey is expected to file an extradition request in the coming days and a Czech court will decide whether to hand Muslim over to the Turkish authorities.
Celebration on Old Town Square for Czech Olympics team
Czech sports fans are planning to give the Czech Olympics team a rousing welcome home on Old Town Square on Monday afternoon.
Ester Ledecká who is the first woman ever to win gold in two separate disciplines in the Winter Olympics will be at the centre of the celebrations.
Also present will be speed skater Martina Sábliková who won a silver medal, Michal Krčmář who bagged silver in the biathlon sprint, snowboarder Eva Samková who picked up a bronze medal and speed skater Karolína Erbanová who took the bronze in the women's 500 metres.
The Czech Republic won seven medals at the Winter Olympics.
Czech Olympics Committee head happy with result of Winter Games
The head of the Czech Olympics Committee Jiří Kejval has expressed satisfaction with the Czech team’s performance at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
Mr. Kejval said that in view of the health problems that plagued Eva Samková and Martina Sáblíková and prevented Gabriela Koukalová from taking part in the games, the outcome was beyond his expectations. The
Czech Republic picked up seven medals, two of them gold, which rank the country overall 14th .
Investigators to start inspection at Mochov plant
Investigators are expected to begin an inspection at the Mochov cooling plant, east of Prague, which was ravaged by fire on Friday.
It took close to forty fire-crews two days to bring the blaze under control.
The preliminary damage estimate has been put at 100 million crowns. No one was hurt in the operation.
Shelters filling up as Arctic conditions take grip
As Arctic conditions take a grip on Central Europe night and day shelters are filling up with homeless people and charity organizations are seeking them out on the street to offer assistance. One person is already reported to have died in Prague as a result of the freezing cold weather.
The situation is expected to worsen in the coming days with night temperatures dropping to – 20 and even – 30 degrees Celsius in places. Children and chronically ill people have been advised to stay indoors.
Weather forecast
The cold spell is expected to continue for most on next week. Monday should bring clear skies and day temperatures between -4 and – 8 degrees. Night time lows from -14 to – 18 degrees Celsius.
