News

Remove illegal waste or we charge you, environment minister tells German state

The Czech environment minister, Libor Ambrozek, has called on the German state of Saxony-Anhalt to remove by the end of April waste illegally exported to Libceves in north Bohemia. Otherwise, Mr Ambrozek said, the Czech authorities will pay for its removal and send them the bill. Firefighters were called out to deal with a blaze at a dump in Libceves at the weekend - the third fire there since February. Several cases of the illegal importing of German rubbish to the Czech Republic have been reported in recent months.

Drowned man believed to be police officer

A dead body found in the River Svratka near Brno is believed to be that of Pavel Weissman, a Brno police officer who disappeared during the recent floods. He was last seen on an embankment in the city on April 3, some 20 km from where the body was found by a passerby.

Record number of Easter weekend tourists

A record number of tourists came to the Czech Republic this year for the Easter weekend, according to tourism analyst Jaromir Beranek. He told the Czech Press Agency that up to 280,000 visitors were accommodated in the country over the weekend, representing an increase of up to a third on 2005. Mr Beranek said that was partly due to the coincidence of Easter with the last weekend of the skiing season.

Prague taxi driver found dead after apparent robbery

A Prague taxi driver was found dead in his car in the Cerny Most district on Sunday morning, TV Nova reported. He had picked up his last passenger on Wenceslas Square on Saturday night. Police believe the motive for the killing was robbery.

Rudolf Slansky, son of 1950s show trial victim Slansky, dies at 71

Rudolf Slansky, a former diplomat and dissident, has died at the age of 71. He was expelled from the Communist Party following the Soviet-led invasion of 1968 and later signed the Charter 77 protest document. From 1990 to 1996 he was Czechoslovak and then Czech ambassador to Moscow, where he had spent the war years as a boy. His father, also Rudolf Slansky, was executed in the 1950s after Czechoslovakia's most notorious show trial.

Prague's biggest funfair closes gates

Prague's biggest funfair Matejska pout closed its gates on Monday for the last time this year. The traditional fair begins at the end of February and takes place in the Vystaviste exhibition grounds in Prague 7.

Stepanek reaches career best ranking of 12th in world

The leading Czech men's tennis player Radek Stepanek has reached 12th in the ATP world rankings, the highest position of his career. Stepanek won his first ATP title in Rotterdam in February, after previously losing three finals.

Fulham interested in Czech footballer Skacel

English Premier League club Fulham are interested in signing the Czech footballer Rudolf Skacel in the summer, the internet site 4thegame.com reported. The player is contracted to Marseilles but has been on loan at Scotland's Hearts all season. He has been a big success at the club, scoring 16 goals in 31 league games.

Weather

It should be mostly bright over the next few days with some cloud and occasional rain. Temperatures are expected to reach up to 18 degrees Celsius.