News: Saturday, March 23rd, 2024

Czech Foreign Ministry condemns terrorist attack near Moscow

The Czech Foreign Ministry has condemned the terrorist attack in Krasnogorsk, near Moscow, in which 60 people were killed and more than 100 injured. "The Czech Republic condemns the terrorist attack near Moscow. The attack on the civilian population is unacceptable. Our condolences to the families of the victims," the ministry said on social networks. The tweet was shared by Prime Minister Petr Fiala and speaker of the lower house Markéta Pekarová Adamová.

Words of condemnation have also come from the Czech Interior Ministry. "A terrorist attack on defenseless civilians is unjustifiable under any circumstances. My condolences to the families and loved ones of all the victims of today's shocking violence in Krasnogorsk," Interior Minister Vít Rakušan wrote on the X network shortly after the news broke.

Speaker of the Senate, Miloš Vystrčil, also expressed his condolences to the families of all the victims and said a terrorist attack is terrible and horrific wherever it occurs.

According to Reuters, masked assailants burst into a large concert hall near Moscow on Friday and sprayed the crowd with gunfire, killing over 130 people, injuring more than 140 and setting fire to the venue. The terror group ISIS has claimed responsibility but failed to provide proof of the claim.

Anti-government protest takes place in Prague

Several thousand people gathered on Prague’s Wenceslas Square on Saturday afternoon to protest against the government. The event is organised by the non-parliamentary PRO party and the allied association Czech Republic against Poverty.

The main demonstration organiser, lawyer and founder of the PRO party, Jindřich Reichl, stated the demonstrators are calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Petr Fiala’s government, which he described as anti-social and anti-Czech. He also rejected the adoption of a common European currency, the European Union's climate policy and the planned ban on internal combustion engines.

Among the speakers was Senator Jana Zwyrtek Hamplová and deputy head of the Social Democratic Party, Michal Hašek, who greeted the demonstrators on behalf of the former head of state, Miloš Zeman. The protest follows on three demonstrations organised by the same group last year.

Over 400,000 Czechs participated in Erasmus exchanges in past 25 years

Some 411,000 Czechs, mostly students and university staff, have participated in international exchanges with the European scholarship programme Erasmus+ over the past 25 years, the Czech News Agency reported on Saturday, citing data by the House of Foreign Cooperation. During the same period, some 118,500 university students came Czechia for study and nearly 30,000 for practical training.

Erasmus, which is the largest European programme in education, was launched in 1987 and Czechia joined it in 1998. It is currently open not only to university students, but also to secondary and primary school pupils, teachers, youth workers and sports coaches.

Prague ferries resume operation after winter break

All of Prague’s six ferry lines are back in operation after the winter break. Four of the seasonal ferries on the Vltava River resumed operation on Saturday morning, while two operate all year round. The ferries, which run at roughly 20-minute intervals, are accessible with Prague public transport tickets and passes. Last year the service was used by nearly 6,000 people.

New exhibit for Przewalski horses opens at Prague Zoo

The Prague Zoo opened a new habitat for Przewalski horses on Saturday. The Gobi exhibit is located in the upper part of the premises and besides the four Przewalski horses, one stallion and three mares, it will also feature the Pallas’s cats and some other small mammals and reptiles.

The Przewalski horse is a rare subspecies native to Mongolia, which became extinct in the wild in the 1960s. Prague Zoo has played a major role in saving the horse, breeding it and returning it to its natural environment. To date, it has sent 38 horses to a nature reserve in the Mongolian steppe, where they have started breeding successfully.

Tennis: Macháč through to third round in Miami

Czech tennis player Tomáš Macháč has advanced to the third round in Miami, after defeatingRussia’s fifth seed Andrey Rublev 6-4, 6-4 on Friday, claiming his first Top 10 win.

The Czech world No. 60, who advanced to the third round of an ATP Masters 1000 for the first time, will next meet the winner of a match between Andy Murray and Tomas Martin Etcheverry.

Weather forecast

Sunday will be mostly overcast with rain showers and day temperatures ranging between 5 and 9 degrees Celsius.