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The Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been the victim of a major security breach, with hackers infiltrating dozens of email accounts, including that of Minister Lubomír Zaorálek. Mr. Zaorálek says experts told him the “sophisticated” cyberattack was likely carried out by a state and resembled hacking of the Democrats in the US. Washington formally blamed Russia for that breach. To discuss the hacking of the Czech Foreign Ministry email, I spoke to Andor Šándor, a security expert who previously headed the country’s Military Intelligence.

Internet firms have appealed to the country’s prime minister, Bohuslav Sobotka, to halt plans for a new military intelligence bill which would give Military Intelligence more powers to police the internet. The government is seeking to bolster cyber security in the Czech Republic but critics worry the bill would give too much power to a single entity.

The world renowned opera singer Placido Domingo is to conduct two performances of Mozart’s opera Don Giovanni at the Estates Theatre in Prague in October to mark 230 years since Mozart himself conducted the premiere of this famous opera in the very same opera house. Domingo visited Prague this week to launch preparations for the cultural event of the year.

The Czech Foreign Ministry has confirmed it will do everything in its power to help Petr Jašek, a Christian missionary who was arrested in Sudan in late 2015 and on Sunday was sentenced to 20 years in prison on spying and other charges. The ministry sees the case against the Czech as unfounded and said that it will work towards trying to secure his release.

A two day series of seminars about media coverage of the refugee crisis in Central Europe and the Baltic States has just wound up in Prague. And most of the messages have not been complimentary about its performance which has often been described as shallow, seizing on disinformation, failing to present a wider picture, and too frequently falling in with local politicians’ take on problems.

On the occasion of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, Czechs are marking the memory of Antonín Kalina, a Czechoslovak Communist who risked his own life to save at least 900, mostly Jewish children from the Holocaust. A documentary about the unsung hero of the Holocaust was premiered on Czech Television this week while his hometown of Třebíč announced plans to open a memorial hall dedicated to their famous son.

The European Figure Skating Championships have just got underway in the north Moravian city of Ostrava. Almost 170 skaters from 33 countries are taking part in the colourful extravaganza, which is being held in the Czech Republic for the first time in 18 years.

The Czech Republic is considering joining an international court case against a planned highway toll on Germany’s historically free autobahns that critics say would discriminate foreign drivers. Transport officials from 11 EU member states, including the Czech Republic, met in Brussels on Wednesday to consider the legal possibilities.

“Are you cold? Take a coat!” That is literally the message on a wardrobe on the main square in Prague 6 where people in need can pick up clothes at the very spot where others have dropped them off. The person behind #Darujkabat (#Donateacoat) is local woman Blanka Fröhlichová. I asked her where she had found the inspiration for the novel project.

The Czech Republic has slipped 10 places on a list of 176 countries in watchdog Transparency International’s annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). Government pledges to curb corruption were largely ineffective last year with warnings that interest groups are “capturing” the state.