Daily news summary

Czechs honour memory of Operation Anthropoid parachutists

Top political and military representatives including Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka, Culture Minister Daniel Herman, General Josef Bečvář - the chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, Prague Mayor Adriana Krnáčová and others paid homage on Sunday to Czechoslovak paratroopers who assassinated acting Reichsprotektor Reinhard Heydrich in 1942. A commemorative ceremony took place at the Church of Cyril and Methodius in Prague where the parachutists died 75 years ago. Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, together with five others who were part of Operation Anthropoid, were tracked to the church by the SS, leading to a final, desperate gun battle. Heydrich’s assassination became a symbol of Czech independence and was later hailed as an important moment in the resistance movement. His killing led to a wave of revenge acts, including the Lidice and Ležáky massacres.

Members of field surgical team return home from Iraq

Members of a Czech field surgical team have completed and returned from their six month mission in Iraq, the spokesman for the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, Jan Šulc, confirmed. During its mission, the team operated on some 50 soldiers northwest of Mosul, who were part of the ongoing operation to drive out Islamic State in both Iraq and Syria. Norwegian doctors took over the mission at the beginning of June.

Zaorálek, Sobotka, pour cold water on Paroubek's plans to rejoin Social Democrats

Former leader of the Social Democratic Party Jiří Paroubek is not likely to be accepted back by the party even as a rank-and-file member, party campaign leader Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek has said in response to a recent attempt by Mr Paroubek to rejoin. Mr Paroubek filed with the party's Kolín branch but would also need approval from Prague Social Democrats, who Mr Zaorálek suggested would not be in favour. Mr Paroubek was party leader from 2006 to 2010, when he resigned as leader after a Pyrrhic victory in the 2010 national election left him powerless to form a new government. He later left the party, founding LEV 21. Mr Paroubek responded by slamming Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and others in the party leadership, using the word "bafunáři" - an expression with derogatory overtones referring to functionaries; the root of the word comes from the English word 'buffoon'. Prime Minister Sobotka suggested that someone who had founded a rival party and tried to hurt the Social Democrats on several occasions should not be allowed back.

Chief Justice: Prime minister's resignation means resignation of government, period

The Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, Pavel Rychetský, said on Sunday there was no doubt that the resignation by the country's prime minister means the end of the entire cabinet. He made the statement on a Sunday political debate program, countering the president's interpretation last month that if Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka had resigned, the decision would have been his alone. Prime Minister Sobotka almost quit as a last-ditch attempt to derail former finance minister Andrej Babiš but later retreated from the move. Justice Rychetský said that both politicians and academicians agreed that the resignation of the prime minister meant the fall of the government; the Chief Justice added that President Miloš Zeman would have received the same reply if he had asked the court for clarification.

Two children hit by car in Plzeň succumb to injuries

Two children struck by a vehicle at or near a pedestrian crossing in Plzeň on Saturday and were rushed to hospital in critical condition, have died, regional police spokesman Jan Koželuh confirmed. The children, who were of Vietnamese nationality and were aged 7 and 12, were struck near a local football stadium, the Czech News Agency said. The police are investigating the cause of the accident but were unable to question the motorist. He suffered a mental collapse, according to the news site.

Women's basketball: Czech squad, stunned by back-to-back losses, faces Spain in final match at European Championships

The Czech women's basketball team faces Spain in Monday in their final group match at the European Championships hosted this year by the Czech Republic. The match, however, will be the last by the Czech squad, after surprise losses to Ukraine and Hungary. With two defeats, the women's team has no hope of getting to the knock-out round.

Weather

Monday should be sunny with daytime highs of 27 degrees Celsius.