News

Cabinet asks Svoboda to propose EU meeting to form common stance on Mohammad cartoons

The government has asked Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda to propose a meeting of European Union foreign ministers to formulate a common position on the controversy surrounding cartoons of Mohammad. The cabinet also expressed solidarity with Denmark, which has come under pressure from some Islamic countries over the caricatures, which first appeared in a Danish newspaper.

Authorities step up measures against possible spread of bird flu

The Czech authorities are stepping up measures to prevent the possible spread of bird flu into the Czech Republic. From Thursday commercial farmers will be banned from allowing birds to move freely outside, while poultry trade fairs and markets will be prohibited from the beginning of next month. The Ministry of Agriculture says there are around 700 large poultry farms in this country.

Finance minister, opposition finance spokesman sue each other

The minister of finance, Bohuslav Sobotka, has said he will file slander charges against Vlastimil Tlusty, finance spokesman for the opposition Civic Democrats. Mr Tlusty had earlier filed charges against the minister, who he accused of putting the interests of the bank CSOB before those of the state.

Customs announce seizure of 35 million in fake US dollars last year

Czech customs officials seized 35 million US dollars in counterfeit banknotes in a container from Vietnam last April, a customs spokesperson said on Wednesday. The Czech National Bank this week said the counterfeit notes were of an extremely poor quality. The consignment was addressed to a Vietnamese citizen - he described it as paper for religious purposes. It has not yet been decided whether the police will investigate the matter.

President opens large Czech Gothic art exhibition at Prague Castle

President Vaclav Klaus has opened an extensive exhibition of Czech Gothic art from the 14th and 15th centuries at Prague Castle. Organisers are expecting large numbers of visitors, and have limited viewing times to 90 minutes per person. Around 170,000 people visited the exhibition at its previous venue, New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Menzel filming Hrabal again, 40 years after first adaptation

The Czech film director Jiri Menzel has announced plans to begin filming an adaptation of Bohumil Hrabal's novel I Served the King of England next month. He has been working on a screenplay for the film for several years. Forty years ago Mr Menzel filmed Hrabal's Closely Observed Trains, for which he won an Academy Award in 1967.

Weather

It should get a bit warmer over the next few days, with temperatures reaching up to 7 degrees Celsius. It should be partly cloudy with occasional rain.