Current Affairs | All stories

School inspectors are investigating a shocking case of students bullying a teacher in a secondary school in Prague. The woman died at the beginning of February after collapsing in the classroom. Although the school denies any link between her death and the incident, experts say her physical and mental suffering could have taken a toll. The case also raises questions as to whether Czech teachers are sufficiently prepared to deal with such incidents.

The leaders of the Visegrad Four and representatives from Macedonia and Bulgaria met in Prague on Monday to discuss plans for closing the Macedonian and Bulgarian borders with Greece, should Athens and Ankara fail to meet their obligations in bringing the flow of migrants under control. Although the Visegrad group insists this is merely a back-up plan, the summit has raised concern about new divisions in Europe.

The Czech art market saw the second best result in its history last year, according to data released by the Czech art investment website artplus.cz. Collectors and investors spent about 926 million crowns at Czech auctions in 2015, which is around 70 million more than in the previous year. The most expensive painting was a still life by Emil Filla which sold for more than 16 million crowns. I asked Jan Skřivánek of ArtPlus what kind of art was most sought after at auction houses:

A Višegrad Four summit on migration in Prague, at which member states and representatives of Bulgaria and Macedonia are discussing ways to enforce Balkan borders has raised hackles in Germany which fears these plans could undermine the EUs agreement with Turkey. With an EU summit on migration just days away and some German commentators predicting a clash between Chancellor Merkel and the Višegrad group, I asked foreign relations expert Michal Kořán from the Prague-based Institute of International Relations, for his take on the matter.

A blaze raged overnight on the roof of the National Museum atop Prague’s Wenceslas Square. The contractors involved insist that adequate fire prevention precautions were in place, but the National Museum says this trio of companies is fully liable for the damages.

Cyber security shot up the agenda in recent weeks in the Czech Republic after the highly publicized hacking of the prime minister’s e-mail and twitter accounts by a group based in the United States. But if that’s raised questions about the state’s readiness to counter and combat cyber threats, the same questions hold true, perhaps even more so, for the private sector.

A controversial bill on electronic cash registers intended to fight tax evasion cleared the lower house on Wednesday. The opposition TOP 09 and Civic Democrat parties, who have fought the legislation tooth and nail, now say they will take the matter to the Constitutional Court.

Czech Foreign Minister Lubomír Zaorálek held talks with top officials in Macedonia on Wednesday offering the country material and personnel assistance in dealing with the refugee crisis. The minister stressed the need to bring the flow of migrants on the so-called Balkans route under control and highlighted the crucial role of Macedonia in helping to bring this about.

A first group of Iraqi pilots has completed training on L-159 fighter jets at manufacturer Aero Vodochody. Iraq has bought 15 of the planes, which were surplus for the Czech Air Force, for training purposes and missions. So far, Iraq has received only two of the aircraft. Great Britain has so far blocked the remainder of the delivery over fears that certain technology could fall into the wrong hands.

An extremely rare and valuable silver coin dating back to the founding of the United States has gone on display in Prague’s National Museum. The so-called Flowing Hair silver dollar is on a four day stopover in Prague as part of a wider European tour.