Paroubek cancels Israel trip

The Czech prime minister, Jiri Paroubek, was forced to cancel a two-day official visit to Israel when his Israeli counterpart, Ariel Sharon, was taken to hospital after suffering a minor stroke. Mr Paroubek, who was due to leave early on Monday morning, had also planned to meet Israel's president, Moshe Katsav, and present the latest Czech made Skoda car on the local market. The visit will be rescheduled, the prime minister's spokesperson said.