Police detain Prague squatters

The police detained 33 of some 200 squatters who occupied an empty government building in central Prague on Thursday night. The squatters moved in at around 8 PM on Thursday, and said they were planning to convert the building into a community centre. However, the police cleared the premises at 3 AM on Friday, after most of the occupiers voluntarily left. 33 people were taken to a police station to ascertain their identities, and were later released. This was the second such incident in Prague; in August, squatters occupied a privately-owned building in the Prague Castle area, and were removed by the police just hours later.

Author: Jan Richter