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On June 10th, 2004, Martin Strel started swimming down the Yangtze river, the longest river in Asia, the third longest in the world. He reached Shanghai in 40 days on July 30th, 2004, one day before planned, and so managed to conquer over 4,000 km of this mighty river. Quite a number of people deemed his latest project impossible and for many it was beyond comprehension.

After weeks of negotiations the Czech Republic has a new government, made up of the same three parties which were in the previous coalition. Prime Minister Stanislav Gross largely delivered on a pledge to have more young faces on the front benches. Mr Gross had also promised more women on the front benches, but of 18 cabinet members only two are female.

Tartan and the Scots go together like a Scotsman and his kilt - or is that an Austrian and his kilt? In the Southern Austrian province of Carinthia a claim is being made that the Tartan was worn by the Celts of Central Europe long before it migrated to Scotland.

World dignitaries from Germany, Great Britain and the US paid homage to the nearly 200,000 fighters and civilians who lost their lives during the 1944 Warsaw Rising. German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said his country was ashamed of the Nazi crimes, and also made clear that there must not be any room for property restitution claims from Germany. Such claims have been advanced by organizations of Germans resettled from areas given to Poland by Stalin after World War II.

Just three weeks ahead of the start of this year's summer Olympic Games in Athens, Slovenia's Olympic team had an official presentation in the capital Ljubljana. This was an opportunity to ask some of Slovenia's top athletes how they feel and what they expect to achieve in Athens.

As the world's natural resources dwindle, and humans consume more and more energy, and pile up more and more waste, many people are beginning to look for alternatives. Firms throughout Europe specialise in finding new and innovative ways of recycling rubbish. Several dozen have sprung up in the Czech Republic.

This week, the Czech and Hungarian armies sent special chemical and biological warfare units to Athens to take part in the massive security operations at the Olympic Games this summer. As part of NATO special forces, one hundred Czech soldiers will guard the city from August 1 to September 30, when the Paralympics end. Major General Emil Pupis explains what the Czech contingent will be doing to help optimize security:

Slovak MEP for the European People's Party, Anna Zaborska, was elected chair of the European Parliament's Committee for Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities on Monday, July 26. In a secret ballot, 15 members of the committee voted for her, four voted against and three abstained. The socialists, who Friday, July 23, withheld support for Zaborska, a member of Slovakia's conservative Christian Democrat party, did not take part in Monday's vote. Conservative as to her publicly presented opinions on homosexuals and abortions, Anna Zaborska will now

The Arab terrorist group which has made threats against Poland and Bulgaria may be described as small and marginal, but the Polish government is taking the matter very seriously. With Warsaw and other Polish cities nearly deserted, because of the holiday season, terrorist attacks seem a remote possibility. But what does the man in the street think about the threats? And what is the Polish government doing to make Poles feel safe?

The district court in the eastern town of Lubartow has ruled that the heirs of the aristocratic Zamojski family have the right to compensation for the unlawful nationalisation in the 1940s of their family park and palace complex in the locality of Kozlowka. Built in baroque style the palace now houses a museum filled with thousands of impressive and extremely precious exhibits.