News

Czechs continue to return home from Egypt following terrorist attacks

A Czech Airlines special has returned from Egypt bringing back 176 Czech and Slovak holidaymakers who decided to cut short their vacations following Saturday's terrorist attacks. The plane, an Airbus A-310, is the third flight since Saturday to bring Czechs home from the Sharm el-Sheikh Red Sea Resort. A fourth is expected to return an additional 200 people late Monday. The Foreign Ministry has estimated there were between 1,500 and 2,000 Czech holidaymakers staying in the Sharm el-Sheik area, in about 40 different hotels, at the time of Saturday's attacks. Ministry spokesman Vit Kolar has said that it was a matter of luck that more Czechs weren't hurt or killed: one Czech man was among the more than 80 people who died.

Czech Rep to see security measures increase

The Czech Republic will see an additional increase in security measures following terrorist attacks in Egypt at the weekend. Speaking at a press conference on Monday the Interior Minister Frantisek Bublan said measures would include an increase in so-called sniffer dogs used to root out bombs, as well as a greater reliance on security cameras in public areas. Intelligence services will be more active, controls over the transport of explosives will be heightened, and for example, more Czech flights will make use of on-board police guards. Although, according to the prime minister, the Czech Republic is not under immediate threat, experts, as well as the prime minister, have said a terrorist attack was impossible to rule out.

PM will not consider a successor to Pavel Dostal for now

Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek has said he has no plans at this time to look for anyone to succeed the Culture Minister Pavel Dostal, who died on Sunday. Mr Paroubek has said that such considerations would not be ethical coming immediately after the minister's death, but he did indicate he would begin considering the matter later in August. The Culture Minister Pavel Dostal died on Sunday at the age of 62, after a year-long fight with cancer. A former playwright and dissident, Mr Dostal was one the Czech Republic's most respected politicians. A memorial event in his honour has been planned for Thursday at the National Theatre in Prague.

Daily: Liverpool's asking price for Milan Baros 7 million pounds

7 million British pounds - that is the price that British daily The Guardian has reported football club Liverpool is asking for striker Milan Baros, almost doubling the price the club paid for the Czech player in 2001. Teams that have expressed an interest in acquiring Baros - who excelled in last year's European Championship - include Spanish club Deportivo La Coruna, English club West Ham United, and English side Aston Villa. According to The Guardian Aston Villa are especially interested in the Czech forward and may consider upping their official offer - until now - of 5 million pounds. Meanwhile, Baros has been on the ball, scoring two goals against Olympiakos Piraeus on Sunday.

Weather

Tuesday is expected to see light rain with a daytime temperature of 26. After that, lots of sunshine and a rise into the high 20s and mid-30s has been forecast for the rest of the week.