Foreign minister receives death threats

The Czech Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda is said to have received anonymous death threats because of his hard-line policy on Cuba. A police spokesman confirmed the news on Wednesday saying that the threats had been directed against the foreign minister and his immediate family. One of the anonymous phone calls in which the caller threatened to shoot Mr. Svoboda was recorded by the police. Mr. Svoboda and his family are getting round the clock protection. The Czech Republic has led a drive for the EU to re-impose sanctions against Cuba and the Czech Foreign Ministry is vocal in its criticism of human rights violations on the island.