Czech ambassador killed in Pakistan hotel blast

The Czech ambassador to Pakistan Ivo Žďárek was killed in a terrorist attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad on Saturday. The bombing killed at least 52 people and injured 145. Mr Ždárek, who was appointed to Pakistan in August, temporarily resided at the hotel without his family, and was present at the time of the attack. The AFP news agency reported that Mr Žďárek called the embassy just minutes after the blast requesting to be rescued from the burning building but had not been heard from since. Pakistani Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani later told reporters that the ambassador’s body was found in the debris and identified. Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg denounced the attack and welcomed the Pakistani government’s resolution to continue its fight against terrorism. Ivo Žďárek, who was 47, joined the Foreign Service in 1986. Prior to his appointment to Pakistan, he served as the Czech ambassador to Vietnam. Mr Žďárek was married with two children.