News of Radio Prague

Eggs thrown at stage during Communist Party rally in Prague

A number of demonstrations have been held in Prague and other cities to mark May Day. Around 10,000 people, mostly old age pensioners, attended the traditional Communist Party rally on Prague's Letna plain. Speakers condemned the war in Iraq and urged Communist Party supporters to vote against their country joining the European Union in next month's referendum. Police detained two young men after eggs were thrown at the stage.

10,000 attend "mock-Communist" May Day parade

Meanwhile in the northern town of Svetla pod Jestedem around 10,000 people gathered for a mock-Communist march, ridiculing the times before 1989 when workers and students were forced to attend May Day parades. Some of the marchers were dressed in Communist-era uniforms and carried red flags. The parade, which has been held in the town for the last eight years, culminated in the burning of an effigy of Lenin.

Anarchists, skinheads clash briefly in Prague

Back in Prague, a small group of anarchists and far-right skinheads clashed briefly on the outskirts of the city centre, with some minor injuries reported. Both groups held small demonstrations and marched through the city, with a brief scuffle in Prague's Dejvice district. Police said they had managed to keep the two groups apart for most of the day. Four skinheads were arrested.

Ten injured as bus collides with train on level crossing

Ten people were injured on Thursday when a bus collided with a train on a level crossing in the eastern town of Frydek-Mistek. One of the injured was air-lifted to hospital. Eye-witnesses say the bus driver ignored warning signs and drove onto the unguarded level crossing.

Czechs trounce Turkey in football friendly

The Czech football team trounced last year's World Cup semi-finalists Turkey 4-0 on Wednesday in a friendly match in Teplice. All four goals came in a stirring first half performance with Borussia Dortmund's Tomas Rosicky opening the scoring after only two minutes. Dortmund team-mate Jan Koller added a second twenty minutes later, while Liverpool pair Vladimir Smicer and Milan Baros completed the scoring before half-time.

Weather forecast

Friday will be another pleasant spring day, with a mixture of sunshine and clouds, and isolated showers in places. Temperatures in the daytime will reach a maximum of 24 degrees Celsius.