President Pavel says he would not honour anti-Communist Mašín brothers

The Czech president, Petr Pavel, says he would not honour the Mašín brothers group, who shot their way to freedom across the Iron Curtain in the 1950s.

After the Senate proposed them for state honours on Wednesday, Mr. Pavel said in a debate with the public that aspects of Mašíns’ story would prevent him from respecting this wish.

Critics say the anti-Communist resistance group committed an immoral act when they killed an unarmed police officer.