News

Police: Army driver probably responsible for tragic crash

An accident in which five soldiers died when their military vehicle was hit by a train at a level crossing in south Moravia was probably caused by the Army driver, police said on Friday. They said the driver probably failed to notice the on-coming train, although an investigation into the tragedy is continuing. Eight other people were injured in Thursday's crash, which was the worst of its kind in the Czech Republic in some years.

Terezin application for EU funds to build university, cultural centre rejected

Terezin has failed to obtain European Union funding to start building a university and cultural centre on the site of the town's former garrison and World War II ghetto, a spokesman said on Friday. He said the main reason the grant application was denied was the fact the buildings have yet to be transferred from Ministry of Defence ownership to the local authorities. But the defence minister, Karel Kuhnl, has said negotiations on the transfer will begin in the New Year.

GDP growth in third quarter less than expected

The Czech economy slowed down in the third quarter of this year; according to figures just released by the Czech Statistical Office GDP growth was at 3.6 percent, less than the 3.9 percent predicted by analysts. Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy Martin Jahn said, however, that the Czech economy was fundamentally healthy. He said GDP growth should exceed 4 percent next year.

Long sentences for Mongolians who attempted to rob, kill taxi driver

Two Mongolian men who attempted to rob and murder a taxi driver in Jihlava have been sentenced to 12 and 13 years in prison by a court in Brno. The court heard how the men, both in their early 20s, stabbed a 57-year-old taxi driver ten times before throwing him out of his car. He was found in a critical condition by people in a passing vehicle.

Illegal gas tapping could have caused explosion, say Ostrava police

Police are investigating the illegal tapping of the local gas system in the north Moravian city of Ostrava, after a gas leak was discovered on Thursday. The local gas company said the inexpertly connected pipes used could have caused an explosion.

Price of stamps to increase from February

Czech Post is putting up the price of services and stamps from February; for instance it will cost 7.5 crowns to send a letter within the Czech Republic, up 1 crown from the current price. The company said the increases would boost both sales and net profits. "Ceska posta" posted net profits of 700 million crowns last year.

Czech international captain Galasek made captain of Ajax Amsterdam again

Czech midfielder Tomas Galasek has once again been appointed captain of the famous Dutch football team Ajax Amsterdam. Galasek, who is 31 and has been at Ajax for four years, was made captain of the Czech national team in October, after the retirement from international football of Pavel Nedved.

Weather

The next few days should see partly cloudy weather, and with temperatures reaching a maximum of 2 or 3 degrees Celsius.