News

The head of Imex Group, the arms dealer who leased and operated the Vrbětice warehouses at the time of the 2014 blasts which have been linked to Russian agents, spent some time close to the hotel where the two Russian agents were staying a day before the blast occurred, Czech Radio’s flagship news channel Radiožurnal reported, citing five independent sources informed about the police investigation.  Petr Bernatík Jr. moreover later visited the warehouse alone to undertake an inspection of the goods there, after ordering that workers who were preparing material for transport be given a whole day’s leave. Police investigators have been trying to trace possible Czech accomplices in the series of deadly blasts.

Monday has brought a further easing of Covid measures. Restaurant gardens have been allowed to reopen under strict hygiene conditions. Tables have to be 1.5 metres apart with a maximum four people at one table. In the event of an inspection, guests will be asked to produce certificates of vaccination, negative Covid tests or proof of post-Covid immunity, but restaurant owners themselves will not be responsible for checking them.

From May 17th, gyms, dance studios, and fitness centres can open to the public, also under strict hygiene conditions. A limit of one visitor per 15 square meters will apply and a maximum of two people can train together in a group. Certificates of vaccination or negative Covid tests will be required.

As of May 17 all primary school children will return to the classroom and outdoor cultural events will be allowed with up to 700 people. Hospitals should also start allowing visitors.

Pubs and restaurants with outdoor spaces and gardens are preparing to open to the public on Monday. The government has set down strict hygiene conditions under which they will be allowed to operate, such as tables being 1.5 metres apart and a maximum of four people at one table. In the event of an inspection guests will be asked to produce certificates of vaccination, negative Covid tests or proof of post-Covid immunity, but restaurant owners themselves will not be responsible for checking them.

Several hundred people attended the Navalis celebrations held in Prague on Saturday to commemorate 300 years since the beatification of St John of Nepomuk, the patron saint of boatmen and bridges.

The celebrations started with a solemn mass in the Cathedral of St. Vitus followed by a procession across Charles Bridge to Křižovnické Square. The traditional water celebrations with gondolas on the Vltava River did not take place this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Celebrations also took place in the town of Nepomuk which unveiled an "old-new" life-size, cast iron statue of St. John of Nepomuk which was discovered in 2019 during a dig in the grounds of the psychiatric hospital in Lnáře. The site belonged to a monastery until 1950 and it is believed that the statue was hidden by Augustinian monks to prevent its destruction.

The main event in Nepomuk will be Sunday‘s pilgrimage mass in the church of St. John of Nepomuk celebrated by Archbishop Dominik Duka.