• 03/19/2024

    The Prague Faculty of Arts of Charles University, which was the target of a deadly attack by a lone shooter last December, has started introducing measures to increase security. Changes are being made in the entrance lobby so that people entering the building will be under bigger scrutiny and there are plans to improve the existing camera system and introduce panic buttons that people can use in an emergency. The faculty is also planning an autumn drill to prepare students and employees for crisis situations . Thursday will mark three months since the tragic incident in which a student of the school shot 14 people dead and wounded 25 before committing suicide.

  • 03/19/2024

    The Czech health authorities are urging pregnant women and people in contect with vulnerable family members to get vaccinated against whooping cough as the number of infected continues to rise. On Monday the State Institute of Health reported the first death from the disease in Czechia this year. The patient was reportedly aged between 55 and 64 and had other serious illnesses. Since the beginning of this year, doctors have diagnosed over 3,100 cases of the disease, with 827 registered last week alone. Although 96 percent of children under the age of one are vaccinated, nearly 60 of them contracted the disease because their immunity was not yet strong enough. The vaccine against whooping cough costs CZK 700 to CZK 1,500, and is not covered by insurance.

  • 03/19/2024

    The governor of the Moravia-Silesia Region, Jan Krkoška from the opposition ANO party, is accused of large-scale bribery within an organized criminal group, Denik.cz reported. The case, which is 12 years old and will be heard in court this week, involves around 200 people, According to the National Centre for Combating Organised Crime, doctors accepted bribes from pharmaceutical companies in return for prescribing their drugs whenever possible. In total, the bribes amounted to approximately CZK 12 million. The case concerns a period between 2009 and 2012 when Jan Krkoška worked for the pharmaceutical company Interchemia Prague. If convicted he could face up to 10 years in prison.

  • 03/19/2024

    The Chamber of Deputies will meet on Tuesday to debate vital security principles after the ruling parties and the opposition mutually accused each other of presenting a security threat to the country through their statements and actions. Foreign Minister Jan Lipavský said ahead of Tuesday’s lower house session that coalition deputies would propose a resolution identifying points vital for Czechia's security, such as membership in the EU and NATO, the need to contain Russian imperialism and, subsequently, the need to support Ukraine. According to Lipavský the resolution will not be ideological in any way. Meanwhile, Karel  Havlíček, deputy chair of the ANO party said ANO considers the Fiala administration to be a growing security threat to the country. The accusations relate to differing stands on the war in Ukraine, with the ruling parties stressing the need to help Ukraine achieve victory and the opposition increasingly calling for peace talks.

  • 03/19/2024

    West Ham United midfielder Tomáš Souček has been voted best Czech footballer of the year for the third time in his career. The captain of the Czech national team, who is 29, received the award in a ceremony in Prague on Monday night.

    Ladislav Krejčí of Sparta Prague came second in the annual poll organised by the Czech Football Association. Vladimír Coufal, who also plays for West Ham, placed third.

    The Czech national squad are in Prague preparing for two friendly internationals.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 03/19/2024

    Speaking in Prague, Slovak President Zuzana Čaputová called on Slovaks living in Czechia to vote in presidential elections in her country. The first round will be held this coming Saturday.

    Ms. Čaputová attended a screening of a new documentary about Václav Havel at Prague Castle on Monday evening with her Czech counterpart, Petr Pavel. Before the film she told reporters that Slovaks needed to participate in democracy, adding that Velvet Revolution leader Havel had been a source of inspiration with regard to defending that concept.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 03/18/2024

    The Czech national soccer team have gathered in Prague for the first time under coach Ivan Hašek. The players have two friendlies planned for the international break, against Norway away on Friday and against Armenia in Prague four days later.

    Nobody has dropped out of the 23-man-squad, meaning the new manager and his officials don’t need to make any additional call-ups.

    Ivan Hašek has more than 50 caps as a player and previously managed the national side two and a half decades ago.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 03/18/2024

    The Czech president, Petr Pavel, has granted permission to 20 Czech citizens to join the armed forces of Ukraine, his spokesperson said on Monday. By contrast, Mr. Pavel, a former senior soldier who has been in the post for just over a year, turned down 56 requests from Czechs seeking to help Ukraine repel its Russian invaders.

    Over 150 Czechs have to date been allowed to fight for Ukraine, with most receiving the green light under the previous presidency of Miloš Zeman.

    Czechs may not fight for the army of another state without such dispensation.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 03/18/2024

    Former Czech president Miloš Zeman is to remain in hospital after an operation last Thursday to deal with a blood clot in his leg. Doctors at Prague’s Motol hospital said on Monday that Mr. Zeman was conscious and was cooperating on his rehabilitation. They said it was not possible to estimate at present how long the former head of state would have to stay at Motol.

    Mr. Zeman, who is 79, smoked and drank alcohol for many years. He has suffered from diabetes and has used a wheelchair for some time.

    Author: Ian Willoughby
  • 03/18/2024

    The US news outlet The Wall Street Journal changed a headline on Sunday referring to Czechia as a “small ex-Soviet satellite state” after a wave of online criticism. The piece centred on a Czech plan to source ammunition for Ukraine, which it said made use of contacts from the previous era.

    The news outlet later replaced the headline with one referring to Central Europe and naming the Czechs.

    The US ambassador to Prague, Bijan Sabet, had earlier “corrected” the initial text on social media, writing instead that Czechia had been a democratic country for over 30 years and an important NATO ally.

    Author: Ian Willoughby

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