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The Carribean island nation of Haiti is the poorest country in the western Hemisphere, and has been plagued by political unrest for most of its history. Over one thousand people have been kidnapped in the former French colony this year alone. Among them was a Czech missionary - who was lucky to escape with his life.

More details have emerged about the arrest in Prague on Sunday of a person described by the Swedish media as "Osama bin Laden's man in Sweden." The man, a 39-year-old Swede of Lebanese origin, is now in custody awaiting a decision on whether extradition proceedings can begin against him.

Only ten days remain to Christmas Eve, the main festive day of Czech Christmas. People are buying Christmas trees and mistletoe, baking Christmas cookies and also looking for presents for their loved ones. One of the favourite places to buy inexpensive and traditional gifts is a Christmas market.

The horrors of the July 7 London bombings are still fresh in our minds. Ten years after the nerve gas attacks on Tokyo's underground railway, the bombs in London showed that public transport systems around the world are still an easy target for terrorists.

The Christmas markets in Prague may be packed but that's not the only business that's booming. This is also the peak season for toy shops. Do Czech children want toys? We went along to a Prague elementary school and asked a Grade 3 class.

Kumar Vishwanathan is originally from southern India. He was leading a quiet life as a teacher in a provincial Czech town when in 1997 disastrous floods swept through the eastern part of the Czech Republic and changed his life for ever. Quite spontaneously he decided to help Romany families who had lost their homes in the industrial city of Ostrava near the Polish border. He thought he would stay for a few weeks. Eight years later, along with his wife and small son, he is still there, working untiringly to build bridges between Roma and non-Roma

The Czech media are awash with claims by a Swedish newspaper that a leading Swedish terror suspect has been arrested in Prague. The tabloid Expressen reported on Tuesday that a 39-year-old Swedish citizen accused of terrorism by the United States has been detained by the Czech authorities.

Situated some 100 kilometres north of Prague, the town Jablonec nad Nisou has a lot to be proud of - predominantly its glass and jewellery -two major export articles that have made it renown all over the world. Last week Jablonec hit the headlines as the first Czech town to get its own town "anthem" on the occasion of its 140th birthday next year. Contrary to what you might expect the lyrics are not about glass or jewellery - they are about apples and love!

The Czech leather industry is up in arms. The wife of ex-Beatle Paul McCartney, Heather Mills McCartney, said last week that there is a thriving cat and dog skins industry and trade in the Czech Republic. Ms Mills went so far as to say that thousands of domestic cats are stolen off the streets for their fur and skinned alive in this country. The response of Czech fur traders has been one of indignation whereas Czech animal campaigners have reacted with caution.

Churches and faith groups from across the religious spectrum have been united by their opposition to a paragraph in the draft penal code, currently under discussion in the Czech parliament. Under the new code, euthanasia would no longer by treated as murder, but a special offence punishable by a maximum of six years in prison. The state's softening stance towards mercy killing has set alarm bells ringing among the religious community, as Rob Cameron reports.