Ukrainian consulate forced to evacuate due to suspicious package

The Ukrainian Consulate in Brno and a nearby school had to be evacuated on Friday morning due to concerns about a suspicious package that had been delivered to the consulate, Police spokesman David Chaloupka told the Czech News Agency. The package was similar to those that had been identified in Spain, where a local Ukrainian Embassy employee was injured on Wednesday after the device exploded.

The package sent to the Brno consulate was then x-rayed by the police. News site Novinky.cz has since reported that the police have found that the package contained organic tissue, adding that a closer laboratory analysis will follow. According to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oleg Nikolenko, the packages delivered to the Brno Consulate and to several other Ukrainian diplomatic representations across Europe contained animal eyes.

Czech Radio reported later on Friday that the Ukrainian Embassy in Prague received a similar package. The postal item is being analysed by pyrotechnicians, the Police stated. No evacuation was necessary in this case, only a partial closing of the surrounding street.

The Czech Police have called on all consulate employees in Czechia, as well as those working in companies producing arms materials, to act with maximum caution when inspecting new mail and to call the Police if they have any suspicions.