News

Strong gales continued to hit parts of northern Moravia on Friday, knocking out power, damaging property, and bringing down trees. Fire brigades were sent out repeatedly on Friday afternoon to deal with situations in some places. Teams secured a damaged traffic light, secured downed cables, and cleared fallen trees from railway tracks. Strong winds have hit northern parts of the country since Thursday, with some areas recoding winds of more than 100 kilometres per hour.

Ice hockey goalie Tomas Vokoun has won his second game since returning from injury, earning a 2:0 shut-out for his team the Nashville Predators against Columbus on Friday. Vokoun got a fair amount of help from fellow team mates, who kept Columbus' chances to a minimum, just 22 shots. Vokoun had missed 20 games during his recovery from a hand injury. His first match back, a less impressive performance by the keeper, Nashville edged Anaheim 5:4.

The newly-appointed government led by Mirek Topolanek has indicated it intends to send additional military personnel to serve in a field hospital mission at Kabul airport, Afghanistan. The rotating mission is to last one year with around seventy personnel taking part. Previously, members of the elite 6th field hospital provided treatment for the wounded and ill in both Afghanistan and Iraq. If the plan is approved, members will join other Czech personnel in Afghanistan already serving under NATO both at Kabul airport as well as in northern parts of the country.

The CTK news agency has reported that some Social Democrat MPs have admitted unofficially they would prefer their party to go into opposition, favouring a negotiated agreement with the right-of-centre Civic Democrats. Such an agreement would allow the right-of-centre party to govern for the next four years. The CTK cited an unnamed source within the Social Democratic Party, who said, by the same token the apparent "dissenters" would not support or tolerate the coalition government in next Friday's confidence vote, and would follow the Social Democrats deputy group's recommendation. Party leader Jiri Paroubek and others including deputies' group leader Martin Hasek have repeatedly ruled out tolerance for Mr Topolanek's government.

In a written letter on Thursday Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek appealed to individual Social Democrats to back his cabinet: he and others have continued to express optimism the government will pass its confidence vote.