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The fifteen of July was a lucky day for 670 tortoises which were seized from an animal dealer in the south-east of the Czech Republic. An investigation has begun into a possible large-scale illegal trade in endangered species. The tortoises in question, that are worth a million crowns and were born and raised in captivity, have now been taken to zoos in Brno and Prague. Petr Velensky, a reptile specialist in Prague's zoo, showed Radio Prague's Jarka Halkova 340 of the tortoises that they are currently taking care of at the zoo.

The European Parliament this week is holding its first full plenary session since the historic enlargement this May of the European Union from 15 to 25 member states. The first order of business on Tuesday, the opening day of the session, was for the 732 MEPs - who between them speak 20 official languages - to elect a new president and 14 vice-presidents.

Jan Zahradil, a Euro-MP for the Civic Democrats, a member party of the largest right-of-centre faction in the European Parliament, is no newcomer to EU institutions: for a year he was an Observer of the European Parliament and he also served as the head of the Czech delegation to the European Parliament between 1998 and 2003. Mr Zahradil told Radio Prague about his first impressions of the European Parliament in a new post.

The Beskydy Mountains along the Czech-Slovak border, are attracting attention again this summer and not just as a vacation hot spot. The newly settled wolf population is preying on sheep and goats and making locals nervous.

Prague's rabbi Karol Sidon was recently dismissed from his position by the board of the Prague Jewish community. The official statement says that he failed to perform his duties satisfactorily. However, there is speculation that behind his dismissal there could also be a dispute between the orthodox and non-orthodox groups in the city's 1600 member strong Jewish community.

A team of Czech military police officers recently left for Saiba, a base in southern Iraq and have begun to help train Iraq's police force. The 100 member Czech contingent is working in close cooperation with British, Danish and Dutch military officers who together have already trained over 2,000 Iraqi policemen to help maintain law and order in the war torn country.

It's official: one year shy of six decades since the Czech national radio headquarters in Prague came under fire from occupying Nazi forces, - and three and a half decades since the Soviets trained their guns on Ceskoslovensky Rozhlas - the rather uninspiring, functionalist-style building on Vinohradska Street has been named a cultural landmark.

Hundreds of lace makers from around the world descended on Prague at the weekend for the 11th World Lace Congress. The congress displays the work of lace makers from dozens of countries and holds exhibitions and workshops for people interested in the ancient craft of lace making.

It seems ever more likely that the new government will be formed by the same coalition parties as the outgoing one. Over the weekend the top executive body of the Social Democrats approved the steps the party's acting head, Stanislav Gross, has been taking in trying to put together a new cabinet, following the resignation of former Prime Minister and party head Vladimir Spidla. Although Mr Gross's negotiations with the Christian Democrats and the Freedom Union were approved by an overwhelming majority of the party's executive committee, a few dissenting

The annual Auto-Stangl vintage car rally was held in Prague at the weekend. Since it began five years ago, this prestigious rally has become one of the biggest events of its kind in the world.