Soldiers deployed to guard border with Slovakia

Some 320 soldiers will be deployed as of Sunday to assist police and customs officers in guarding the state border with Slovakia. Soldiers from ground forces and members of active reserves will be based in the South Moravia, Zlín and Moravia-Silesia regions.

Czechia reinstated controls at 27 former border crossings with Slovakia on September 28 in response to an increase in illegal migration. They were originally supposed to last until Saturday, but this week the government approved extending them for another twenty days, until 28 October.

Since the reintroduction of the border checks, police officers have detected around 1,700 migrants and seized nearly 50 smugglers.